Article publication date
February 2026
ARPANSA review date
10 February 2026
Summary
This population-based case-control study examined the association between occupational exposure to extremely low frequency electromagnetic fields (ELF-EMF) and postmenopausal breast cancer among women in Canada. The study included 663 breast cancer cases occurring in women aged between 47 and 75 years and 592 controls in the same age cohort. Information on breast cancer cases was gathered from histopathological reports. Occupational ELF-EMF exposure was estimated by using a job exposure matrix (JEM). Overall, the study indicated no elevated risk of breast cancers as a result of workplace ELF-EMF exposure.
Published in
Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
Link to study
Commentary by ARPANSA
The study found no overall risk of postmenopausal breast cancer and occupational ELF-EMF exposure. Similar findings have been consistently reported previously (e.g., Koeman et al., 2014; Labrèche et al., 2003). The present study advances the evidence base for assessing breast cancer risks associated with occupational ELF‑EMF exposure. However, several limitations should be acknowledged. First, the JEM inherently assigned exposure solely based on job title without considering within‑job variability in exposure levels. This results in non-differential misclassification of exposure biasing association towards null. Second, the study had a relatively low and differential response rate (54% among cases and 41% among controls), which may have introduced selection bias. Third, potential co‑exposures to other occupational carcinogens, such as chemical agents or ionizing radiation, were not assessed. It is ARPANSA’s assessment that there is no substantiated scientific evidence that ELF-EMF exposure below the limits recommended by international guidelines (e.g., ICNIRP) poses a health risk. More information about exposure to ELF-EMF can be found on the ARPANSA factsheet Electricity and health | ARPANSA.
