Massive Mobile Phone Health Risk Study UnderwayMassive Mobile Phone Health Risk Study Underway

The most comprehensive study to date on whether mobile phones pose a health threat has been launched.

Known as the Cohort Study of Mobile Phone Use and Health (COSMOS) the study will last for up to 30 years, which is double the amount of time other studies took to complete their findings. The study will question 200,000 mobile phone users living in five countries: Britain, Finland, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Denmark.

The COSMOS study forms part of the Mobile Telecommunications and Health Research Programme (MTHR), a UK body funded by numerous industry and government sources and run by independent experts, mostly university academics.

Researchers say they hope to find a definitive answer on whether the use of mobile phones is linked to long-term health effects such as brain cancer as well as other disorders including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Diseases, which have not previously been examined in other research studies focused on mobile phone use.

"This is the industry's way to kill the specter, hopefully once and for all, that there is a link between cell phones and cancer," said Ramon Llamas, senior research analyst with IDC Mobile Devices Technology and Trends.

According to Llamas, people use their mobile phones much more now than they did 10 years ago and they use them in different ways. Today people watch movies, TV shows, and surf the Web with the devices.

"This study should add importantly to our understanding of whether there are significant long-term health risks from use of mobile phones. The parallel collection of similar data in several European countries will give added value," Professor David Coggon, chairman of the MTHR Programme Management Committee said in a statement.

Over the years, several studies have concluded that there is a link between cell phone use and cancer. In 2009, reports surfaced from the World Health Organization that its research uncovered long-term mobile phone users were at a higher risk of developing cancer later in life.

Another study, published in the February 2008 issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology, suggested a link between heavy cell phone use and salivary gland cancer. The study noted that people who used cell phones held up to their faces for several hours per day were 50% more likely to develop a tumor in the salivary gland.

In 2006, a study published by the Swedish National Institute for Working Life, concluded that there was a 240 percent increase in risk for a cancerous tumor on the side of the head where a person constantly used their mobile phone.

According to IDC's Llamas, however, sales have continued to rise in spite of the negative news surrounding mobile phone use.

Last month, IDC's five-year forecast for the worldwide mobile phone market showed a rebound in 2010. Handset shipments worldwide are expected to reach a total of 1.3 billion units, up 11.0% from the 1.1 billion units shipped in 2009. IDC predicts mobile phone shipments will grow another 6.6% to reach 1.6 billion units worldwide in 2014.