An international prospective cohort study of mobile phone users and health (Cosmos): design considerations and enrolment.

Cancer epidemiology · 2011 · Unclear · Insufficient evidence

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UnclearInsufficient evidencePaper 4479

This article describes the design and enrolment considerations for the COSMOS prospective cohort study of mobile phone users, including prospective exposure assessment via questionnaires and objective network operator traffic data and long-term follow-up thro…

Study snapshot

PublicationCancer epidemiology · 2011

Study typecohort

Reported directionUnclear

Evidence ratingInsufficient

Abstract

BACKGROUND: There is continuing public and scientific interest in the possibility that exposure to radiofrequency (RF) electromagnetic fields (EMF) from mobile telephones or other wireless devices and applications might increase the risk of certain cancers or other diseases. The interest is amplified by the rapid world-wide penetration of such technologies. The evidence from epidemiological studies published to date have not been consistent and, in particular, further studies are required to identify whether longer term (well beyond 10 years) RF exposure might pose some health risk. METHODS: The "Cosmos" study described here is a large prospective cohort study of mobile telephone users (ongoing recruitment of 250,000 men and women aged 18+ years in five European countries - Denmark, Finland, Sweden, The Netherlands, UK) who will be followed up for 25+ years. Information on mobile telephone use is collected prospectively through questionnaires and objective traffic data from network operators. Associations with disease risks will be studied by linking cohort members to existing disease registries, while changes in symptoms such as headache and sleep quality and of general well-being are assessed by baseline and follow-up questionnaires. CONCLUSIONS: A prospective cohort study conducted with appropriate diligence and a sufficient sample size, overcomes many of the shortcomings of previous studies. Its major advantages are exposure assessment prior to the diagnosis of disease, the prospective collection of objective exposure information, long-term follow-up of multiple health outcomes, and the flexibility to investigate future changes in technologies or new research questions.

Machine Enhanced Logic

AI evidence extraction

Structured fields below were generated from the paper’s abstract and metadata to make the evidence easier to inspect. Automated extraction may be incomplete or incorrect; verify important details against the original paper.

Study typecohort

Effect directionunclear

PopulationMobile telephone users (men and women aged 18+ years) in five European countries (Denmark, Finland, Sweden, The Netherlands, UK)

Sample size250000

ExposureRF · 25+ years follow-up; longer term exposure well beyond 10 years

Evidence strengthInsufficientConfidence: 74% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

Outcomes measured

cancers
other diseases
headache
sleep quality
general well-being

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "cohort",
  "exposure": {
    "band": "RF",
    "source": "mobile phone",
    "frequency_mhz": null,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": "25+ years follow-up; longer term exposure well beyond 10 years"
  },
  "population": "Mobile telephone users (men and women aged 18+ years) in five European countries (Denmark, Finland, Sweden, The Netherlands, UK)",
  "sample_size": 250000,
  "outcomes": [
    "cancers",
    "other diseases",
    "headache",
    "sleep quality",
    "general well-being"
  ],
  "main_findings": "This article describes the design and enrolment considerations for the COSMOS prospective cohort study of mobile phone users, including prospective exposure assessment via questionnaires and objective network operator traffic data and long-term follow-up through disease registries and questionnaires. No health effect results are reported in the abstract.",
  "effect_direction": "unclear",
  "limitations": [],
  "evidence_strength": "insufficient",
  "confidence": 0.74,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "COSMOS",
    "prospective cohort",
    "mobile telephone users",
    "radiofrequency",
    "RF EMF",
    "exposure assessment",
    "questionnaires",
    "network operator traffic data",
    "cancer",
    "headache",
    "sleep quality",
    "well-being",
    "Europe"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "who-icnirp",
      "weight": 0.2,
      "reason": "General RF-EMF health-risk context; no specific policy body mentioned."
    }
  ]
}

AI can be wrong. Always verify against the paper.

AI-extracted fields are generated from the abstract and metadata and may be incomplete or incorrect. This material is for informational purposes and is not medical advice.

Identifiers and source

DOI: 10.1016/j.canep.2010.08.001
PubMed: 20810339

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