The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) is an agency of the World Health Organisation. Its Unit of Carcinogen Identification and Evaluation has, since 1972, periodically published Monographs which assess the evidence that various agents are carcinogenic and classify the agents accordingly. In June 2001, a Working Group met to consider static and extremely-low-frequency electric and magnetic fields. The key decision was to classify power-frequency magnetic fields as “possibly carcinogenic”. See also their classification of static fields.
The complete results have been published as Monograph number 80. The following table assembles the various classifications into a single table. More on the scheme IARC use for these classifications.
Power-frequency magnetic fields were classified as “possibly carcinogenic” on the basis of
• “limited” evidence from humans concerning childhood leukaemia,
• “inadequate” evidence from humans concerning all other cancer types, and
• “inadequate” evidence from animals.
Power-frequency electric fields were judged “not classifiable” on the basis of “inadequate” evidence from both humans and animals.
These classifications are consistent with the conclusions reached by the NRPB’s Advisory Group.
Evidence in humans | Evidence in animals | Overall classification | |
Available categories: | Sufficient Limited Inadequate Suggests lack of carcinogenicity | Sufficient Limited Inadequate Suggests lack of carcinogenicity | 1 (is carcinogenic) 2A (probably carcinogenic) 2B (possibly carcinogenic) 3 (not classifiable) 4 (probably not carcinogenic) |
IARC classification in Monograph 80 | |||
Static magnetic fields | Inadequate | Inadequate | 3 (not classifiable) |
Static electric fields | Inadequate | Inadequate | 3 (not classifiable) |
ELF magnetic fields | Childhood leukaemia: limited | Inadequate | 2B (possibly carcinogenic) |
All other cancers: inadequate | |||
ELF electric fields | Inadequate | Inadequate | 3 (not classifiable) |
Other agents classified by IARC
- Many other agents have been placed by IARC in the same category of “possibly carcinogenic” see complete list.
- See also EMFs compared to some other specific agents.
See also:
- More detail on IARC's classification scheme
- IARC's classification of static fields
Other review bodies:
- World Health Organization (WHO)
- International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC)
- International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP)
- The European Union's Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR)
- Public Health England (PHE), formerly Health Protection Agency (HPA),
- Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET)
- National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)
- National Academy of Sciences (NAS)
- California Department of Health Services
- Bioinitiative