Most people are aware that microwave ovens use waves to heat foods and liquids.

Cell phones use the same types of microwaves, only at levels far below what is needed to produce significant heat.

A great number of studies have shown that the harm caused is not secondary to heat buildup, but rather that microwaves are generating high levels of free radicals, which are damaging cell structures.

One of the most shocking things about cell phone damage is that it impairs cell DNA repair.

Normally, if DNA undergoes damage, some hundred or so DNA repair enzymes quickly fix it. These enzymes are working constantly to repair damaged DNA.

One of the leading causes of cancer is impaired DNA repair mechanisms. Several recent studies have found that microwave radiation of the same intensity as cell phones seriously impairs DNA repair enzymes.

Keep in mind that familial breast cancer — a very aggressive type — is characterized by impaired DNA repair enzymes called BRCA1 and BRCA2.

Several cases of breast cancer associated with women wearing cell phones in their bra have shocked surgeons and researchers.

One of the most disconcerting involved a 38-year-old Chinese woman who had no family history of breast cancer. She was also a vegetarian and in otherwise excellent health.

For seven years, she wore her cell phone in her bra, pressed up against her right breast. She developed a multifocal breast cancer, which is rare because most breast cancers develop from a single focus.

Another case occurred in an even younger woman: She was a 21-year-old who had stored her cell phone in her bra for four years before she developed an aggressive breast cancer in the exact spot where she kept the phone.

Breast cancer in a 21-year-old with no family history of the disease, who was negative for the BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutations is as rare as hen’s teeth.