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Emily Fowler
Prof. Jackie Hymes
English 114 A
November 12, 2014
Does Cell Phone Radiation Cause Cancer?
The majority of the population in the world owns a cell phone. There are many different
controversies discussing whether the radiation released from cell phones causes cancer to us
humans or not. Some scientists have argued that cell phones release radiation that can easily be
absorbed into your skin and then resulting in harmful effects, like cancer. Other scientists have
argued that cell phones do not release anything and therefore we are completely safe using cell
phones exactly the way we do. Cell phones are not harmful, and even if they were, we would
have already seen or experienced the effects that they would have on individuals, especially
cancer. In reality, there are many electric appliances that contain the equal amount of radiation or
more than a cell phone does and we are exposed to these all around us everyday. Things all
around a typical home emit radiation waves, through appliances such as microwaves, light bulbs,
and computers. If it were to be dangerous to be around cell phones all the time, then all kitchen
appliances around you are harming you as well due to the amount of radiation that is letting off.
Though cell phones do release radiation waves through them that does not necessarily mean that
they cause cancer.
Some scientists have said that the amount of radiation released through cell phones is
dangerous to all of their users, but this is not a statement that can be proven true. There are
scientists that describe in detail that there are no dangerous or harmful effects caused by these
radiation waves. These scientists say that there are many reasons to convince you that these

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radiation waves are not harmful, through the scientific research behind radiation. There are
particles called photons. Photons are tiny particles and they are what carry all of the
electromagnetic radiation within a cell phone. So, the photon gets all its strength and energy
from the amount of frequency it acquires around it. The stronger that photon is, the more damage
it is going to eventually do. The amount of photons you have only means how much heat is being
emitted so this means that the more photons you have the hotter it is. According to this, every
object that a photon comes in contact with, will become hotter once in contact. The photons that
are inside of electronics, such as cell phones, have less radiation that is being let out than the
amount that even light is letting out. Therefore, these scientists are clearly telling their readers
that being in contact with light bulbs is more dangerous than being in contact with cell phones.
George Markowsky states in his article referring about radiation that, No one is proposing that
we put a label on light bulbs warning about their electromagnetic radiation, even though they
produce photons having about two hundred thousand times as much energy as the photons
produced by cell phones (para 7). The photons that are being released by both of these objects,
cell phones and light bulbs, are not very strong so this means that the radiation that they are
emitting is not going to chemically change anything within our bodies. Another aspect to look at
is the relationship between the photons in these different objects versus the photons in the sun.
The sun releases a lot of photons that always affects all humans chemically, which is why
humans tend to result in getting sunburns. Because the radiation in cell phones does not
chemically change anything, it leads this argument to prove that cell phones do not have any
effects to give people cancer.
Scientists say that the radiation released from the cell phone is formed in a type of energy
that is absorbable by the tissues in our skin wherever the phone is being held, but in this

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argument, the scientists also have no standing argument for themselves. These scientists of the
Cancer Institute have also gone on to say, Studies thus far have not shown a consistent link
between cell phone use and cancers of the brain, nerves, or other tissues of the head or neck (para
1). These scientists also state that their research still needs to be continued because of how
often cell phones are changing and how often people are changing their cell phones. This
research is also not consistent with the damage done by microwaves. The research to find out if
these arguments can be proven true cannot be statistically accurate because these are just a small
amount of people who have had this problem, so it does not give an accurate representation of
statistics. Another reason that research for this has been flawed is that there are different cities
that are more prone to cancer than other cities. They can look at radioactivity going on within
the body and can assume it is from cell phones, but it can be exposure from another object that
everyone else around them has similar routines, such as the kitchen appliances mentioned earlier.
If these people participating in this research all have something in common, such as having a cell
phone, they can also blame it on another thing they have in common. Including these statistics
having an incomplete amount of information can either convince their readers or not, which can
make it look strong, or just ridiculous. The example Markowsky gave in his article said, In the
Boston area, you can find some neighborhoods that have a higher cancer rate than others. You
would also find that these high cancer rate neighborhoods have a very high percentage of Red
Sox fans. On the other hand, you and find neighborhoods in the New York City area that have
low cancer rates and a low percentage of Red Sox fans. You could then claim that you have
proof that being a Red Sox fan increases your likelihood of getting cancer (para 12). This
example gives an exact representation of what can be a losing factor for the scientists arguing
towards the harmful effects of radiation.

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The results of this argument are that cell phones are not dangerous. As long as you are
responsible with your cell phone, and use it safely, you will not suffer consequences from them.
There is not enough radiation emitted to be able to actually harm you, therefore they are not
harmful. It is just another thing to worry about that does not need to be worried about. Cell
phones are changing so much annually that there is yet to be a problem. So, enjoy your cell
phone, because if you really thought your cell phone harmed you, you would stop using it.

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Works Cited
Anonymous. Phones and Cancer Risk. 2012. Web. 12 November 2014.
Markowsky, George. Phones Arent Dangerous, Dont Need Labels. 4 March 2010. Web. 12
November 2014.