An international storm of conflicting media accounts around a large global study on cellphones’ effects on health has prompted the Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association to wade in, reports Communications Day this week.

The organisation, which said it had been briefed on the research in its entirety, warned that press outlets had taken elements out of context to blur the report’s key message: that it had found no substantive evidence for an increased risk of brain cancer from mobile use.

The Interphone study, a cooperative project between thirteen nations, was the biggest so far conducted on the potential health impacts of mobiles. It was co-ordinated by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, part of the World Health Organisation, with results to be released today at 1:30am Paris time. However, trouble began brewing when a number of news organisations around the world received information about the results a week early under strict embargo.

The UK Times Online broke the embargo on Sunday, publishing claims that the study showed anyone regularly using their handsets for over 30minutes per day was at increased risk of developing glioma tumours. Other news outlets around the world, including The Australian, quickly followed suit with similar angles; but shortly thereafter, mobile industry stakeholders began a counterstrike, brandishing the same study as evidence against a link.

AMTA was one of the organisations that moved to counter the initial wave of reports – albeit feeling, a spokesman said, aggrieved at being pushed into the “invidious situation” of having to comment ahead of the embargo to correct “misleading” media interpretations.

According to AMTA CEO Chris Althaus, the Interphone researchers concluded that: “Overall, no increase in risk of glioma or meningioma was observed with use of mobile phones. There were suggestions of an increased risk of glioma at the highest possible exposure levels, but biases and error prevent a causal interpretation. The possible effects of long-term heavy use of mobile phones require further investigation.”

“Our hand was forced somewhat; not only did we see [reports of the study] emerging in the UK press, but we were aware that other local press were also running it,” Althaus told CommsDay.

“We knew that the scientific side of this equation would be bound by the embargo... we were reluctant to break that, but we didn’t want a vacuum to be created, so we’ve done extensive media on the core findings of the report.”

“Professor Ian Olver, from the Cancer Council, has put a media release out... Professor Armstrong, who led the Australian Interphone delegation, has made some comments,” Althaus added.

“Most of the commentary is along the lines of... this study doesn’t show any increased risk. There are some anomalies in the data that the authors warn against misinterpreting... but that set the direction for the ongoing research effort.”