WHO Knew: The Elephant in the Room – guest blog by Susan Foster

This is the next in a series of guest blogs on BRHP. The opinions expressed in it are of Susan Foster herself. Publication of these opinions in BRHP does not imply that BRHP automatically agrees with or endorses these opinions. Publication of this, and other guest blogs, is an attempt to start an open debate and free exchange of opinions on RF and health.

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WHO Knew: The Elephant in the Room

by Susan Foster

Monday, February 3, 2014 was a very strange day in London.  Only the weather was predictable. A cold rain fell as a dais of scientists faced a room full of reporters in the Royal Society Library’s Special Events Room on Carlton House Terrace.  With its pillared roots going back to the 1600s, the Royal Society Library had welcomed scientists from all over the world for centuries.

On this day, two scientists distinguished themselves as authors of the thick, glossy tome that was almost the biggest presence in the press briefing.  Co-authors Prof. Bernard Stewart, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales and Christopher Wild, PhD, Director of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) esteemed International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) prepared to tell the world we are on the verge of a cancer tsunami.  World Cancer Report 2014 was nearly six years in the making.  IARC is the cancer agency of the WHO, and a core part of their mission is to disseminate information on cancer.  They gather information, frequently classify the risk level of various substances, and share that news with the world.  This day the news was daunting.

To continue reading…WHO Knew – The Elephant in the Room