Source Article: International Commission on the Biological Effects of Electromagnetic Fields
Concerns about the health effects of wireless radiofrequency (RF) radiation have been growing as cell phone (mobile phone) use, 5G deployment, and cell tower installations expand across cities worldwide.
In this presentation, Professor Lennart Hardell, a leading researcher with decades of work on environmental and cancer risks, highlighted the scientific evidence indicating that everyday exposures to wireless RF are not safe, even at legally allowed levels.
According to Dr. Hardell, “Human epidemiological and case studies on RFR exposure from cell phones and antennas show evidence of harmful effects for people.”
Vimeo Link, PDF of powerpoint slides
Real-World RF Radiation Exposure from Cell Antennas
Hardell’s presentation documented how antennas are increasingly positioned in places that involuntarily expose the public to RF. His presentation references his publications measuring RF exposure in the real world which found ordinary citizens, including children, commuters, and workers, are regularly within close range of high-powered antennas without awareness or consent.
Clinical Evidence of Microwave Illness
Beyond environmental surveys of RF levels, Hardell also presented clinical data that point to biological effects of long-term RFR exposure. In collaboration with Mona Nilsson, he summarized seven Swedish case reports of individuals reporting acute onset of microwave syndrome symptoms such as sleep disturbance, fatigue, headache, memory impairment, and skin problems. The health symptoms subsided when individuals relocated to lower RF exposure environments.
Perhaps the most urgent message from Hardell’s presentation is the disconnect between current international exposure guidelines and scientific research. While regulatory agencies use the ICNIRP limits which base safety limits on short-term heating effects, case studies and epidemiological research are documenting adverse outcomes, including neurological symptoms and tumor risks, at exposure levels well below those limits. Existing standards are not adequately protecting public health. The presentation by Dr. Hardell reinforces the importance of recognizing that RFR exposure is not only a technological issue but also a public health challenge.
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About Dr. Lennart Hardell
Hardell has a long career as both a physician oncologist and as a cancer epidemiologist, now retired from the Department of Oncology, Örebro University hospital. He now leads the Environment and Cancer Research Foundation, promoting scientific research on the association between the environment and cancer and other chronic diseases. In the late 1970’s and early 1980’s he was the first to document an increased risk for cancer in persons exposed to phenoxy herbicides and contaminating dioxins and his group has also conducted studies on the cancer risk of persistent organic pollutants, such as PCB and the risk for malignant lymphoma.
Dr. Hardell has published more than 380 peer-reviewed scientific articles and his research has contributed to the cancer classification of different agents such as TCDD, PCB, the herbicide glyphosate, and radio-frequency fields. Dr. Hardell was also an invited member of the scientific working groups of the WHO International Agency for Research on Cancer evaluation of RF.
Some of the Scientific Publications on Wireless Radiation by Dr. Hardell
Lennart Hardell, Mona Nilsson. High Radiofrequency Radiation in the Surroundings of 10 Schools in Örebro. Fortune Journal of Health Sciences
Hardell, L., & Koppel, T. (2022). Electromagnetic hypersensitivity close to mobile phone base stations – a case study in Stockholm, Sweden. Reviews on Environmental Health.
Khurana, V. G., Hardell, L., Everaert, J., Bortkiewicz, A., Carlberg, M., & Ahonen, M. (2010). Epidemiological evidence for a health risk from mobile phone base stations. International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health
Koppel, T., Ahonen, M., Carlberg, M., & Hardell, L. (2022). Very high radiofrequency radiation at Skeppsbron in Stockholm, Sweden from mobile phone base station antennas positioned close to pedestrians’ heads. Environmental Research
Hardell, L., & Nilsson, M. (2023). Case Report: The Microwave Syndrome after Installation of 5G Emphasizes the Need for Protection from Radiofrequency Radiation. Annals of Case Reports.
Hardell, Lennart and Nilsson, Mona. “Summary of seven Swedish case reports on the microwave syndrome associated with 5G radiofrequency radiation” Reviews on Environmental Health, 2024.
Hardell, L., Carlberg, M., Koppel, T., Nordström, M., Hedendah, L. Kl. (2020). Central nervous system lymphoma and radiofrequency radiation – A case report and incidence data in the Swedish Cancer Register on non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Medical Hypotheses
Hardell, L. (2017). World Health Organization, radiofrequency radiation and health—A hard nut to crack (Review). International Journal of Oncology
Hardell, L., & Carlberg, M. (2020). [Comment] Health risks from radiofrequency radiation, including 5G, should be assessed by experts with no conflicts of interest. Oncology Letters,
Hardell, L., & Carlberg, M. (2021). Lost opportunities for cancer prevention: Historical evidence on early warnings with emphasis on radiofrequency radiation. Reviews on Environmental Health
Hardell, L., Nilsson, M., Koppel, T., & Carlberg, M. (2021). Aspects on the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) 2020 Guidelines on Radiofrequency Radiation. Journal of Cancer Science and Clinical Therapeutics
Hardell, L., & Sage, C. (2008). Biological effects from electromagnetic field exposure and public exposure standards. Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy
Hardell, L., & Carlberg, M. (2019). Comments on the US National Toxicology Program technical reports on toxicology and carcinogenesis study in rats exposed to whole-body radiofrequency radiation at 900 MHz and in mice exposed to whole-body radiofrequency radiation at 1,900 MHz. International Journal of Oncology
Hardell, L., & Carlberg, M. (2013). Using the Hill viewpoints from 1965 for evaluating strengths of evidence of the risk for brain tumors associated with use of mobile and cordless phones. Reviews on Environmental Health
Hardell, L., & Carlberg, M. (2015). Mobile phone and cordless phone use and the risk for glioma—Analysis of pooled case-control studies in Sweden, 1997-2003 and 2007-2009. Pathophysiology: The Official Journal of the International Society for Pathophysiology
Hardell L, Carlberg M, Söderqvist F, Mild KH. Pooled analysis of case-control studies on acoustic neuroma diagnosed 1997-2003 and 2007-2009 and use of mobile and cordless phones. Int J Oncol.
Hedendahl, L., Carlberg, M., & Hardell, L. (2015). Electromagnetic hypersensitivity—An increasing challenge to the medical profession. Reviews on Environmental Health
Nilsson M, Hardell L. (2023) Development of the Microwave Syndrome in Two Men Shortly after Installation of 5G on the Roof above their Office. Ann Clin Case Rep
Hedendahl, L. K., Carlberg, M., Koppel, T., & Hardell, L. (2017). Measurements of Radiofrequency Radiation with a Body-Borne Exposimeter in Swedish Schools with Wi-Fi. Frontiers in Public Health
Tags:cell phone cancer riskcell phone health riskcell phone radiationlennart hardellwireless radiationWorld Health Organization
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