ABSTRACT
In industrialized societies such as the United States, about half of adult men and a third of women develop cancer during their lifetime (Siegel et al. 2013). Cancer is typically characterized as uncontrolled or unregulated proliferation of cells, with a tendency to invade neighboring tissues and organs and to spread to more distant parts of the body through metastasis. Cancer types are classified based on the organ and cell type from which they originate, and by morphological characteristics of the cancer cells themselves. Cancer types may be further characterized and categorized using various molecular techniques or based on the presence of specific genetic changes in the cancer cells. Carcinogenesis, according to current thinking, is a multistep process that may include genetic (alteration in DNA composition and structure) and epigenetic (alteration in gene expression without DNA modification) changes. External stimuli, such as environmental and occupational exposures, may contribute to some of these changes and play a role in tumor causation. Extremely low-frequency magnetic fields (ELF-MF) are part of the nonionizing range of the electromagnetic spectrum. Due to its low energy level, ELF-MF is not able to break
CONTENTS
Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 161 Breast Cancer ............................................................................................................................... 162
Residential Studies, 2005-2012 ............................................................................................. 163 Occupational Studies, 2005-2012 ......................................................................................... 163
Leukemia ...................................................................................................................................... 170 Residential Studies, 2005-2012 ............................................................................................. 171 Occupational Studies, 2005-2012 ......................................................................................... 172
Brain Tumors................................................................................................................................ 172 Residential Studies, 2005-2012 ............................................................................................. 173 Occupational Studies, 2005-2012 ......................................................................................... 174
Other Cancers .............................................................................................................................. 175 Residential Studies, 2005-2012 ............................................................................................. 175 Occupational Studies, 2005-2012 ......................................................................................... 175
Electric Fields ............................................................................................................................... 176 Methodological Considerations ................................................................................................ 176 Summary ...................................................................................................................................... 179 References ..................................................................................................................................... 180
chemical bonds or directly affect the cells’ DNA, resulting in mutations. ELF-MF is hypothesized to influence epigenetic changes, resulting in altered cell proliferation and differentiation, apoptosis, or modified adaptive responses (Vijayalaxmi and Prihoda 2009), thus potentially playing a role in cancer development.
