A Missouri school is under review for a potential cancer cluster after several teachers and possibly former students at the school, which is located next to a cell tower, were diagnosed with cancer.
Laura Bauer reports for The Kansas City Star.
In short:
- At least six Warren Hills Elementary teachers have been diagnosed with breast cancer since 2020, prompting growing concern among parents, teachers, and health advocates. There are anecdotal reports that former students have developed other cancers.
- The school sits just 130 feet from a 120-foot cellular tower, leading some experts and families to question whether wireless radiation or other environmental factors could be contributing to illnesses.
- Missouri’s Cancer Inquiry Committee will review data later this month to determine whether cancer cases at the school are statistically abnormal and merit a full investigation.
Key quote:
“When you actually look at the published research, safety is not assured. And to me, it just makes sense to have safeguards, especially when you have literally hundreds of scientists calling for more protection. Schools should be safe learning environments.”
— Theodora Scarato, director of the Wireless Radiation and EMF Program at Environmental Health Sciences
Why this matters:
The U.S. is among the countries that allow the most radiofrequency (RF) radiation emitted into the environment from cell towers. Many other countries enforce stricter limits, especially near schools and homes.
Over the years, lawmakers — including Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon and several federal and state officials — have written to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) requesting that the 1996 exposure limits for cell tower and wireless RF radiation be updated. Seventeen residents in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, reported health issues after a nearby cell tower began transmitting, prompting an investigation by the city's board of health and a later-rescinded cease-and-desist order. Similarly, parent protests over a cell tower at Washington Elementary in Michigan prompted U.S. Rep. Shri Thanedar to urge the FCC to update its safety limits and led to a bill proposed by State Rep. James DeSana to distance cell towers from schools.
Learn more about wireless radiation and electromagnetic fields and schools that ban cell towers.
