The microchips now being implanted under the skin of pets - and in some cases, humans - may cause cancer. The chips, approved by the FDA in 2005, emit radio frequency signals that can be tracked if a pet gets lost. Some people with chronic medical conditions also have had the chips implanted, so that if they become unconscious, doctors can instantly obtain their medical histories. In the past two years, 2,000 people and millions of pet cats and dogs have been fitted with the glass-encased RFID chips. But now, the Associated Press has uncovered a series of studies conducted between 1996 and 2006 that found the chips caused deadly tumors in rats and mice. A 1998 study found that 10 percent of their microchipped mice developed cancer - a finding researchers called “surprising”. German researhers found a 1 percent cancer rate in a spearate study, concluding that the tumors “are clearly due to the implanted microchips.” Manufacturer VeriChip disputes the studies, and the FDA says it remains confident of the safety fo the implanted chips. But Dr. Robert Benezra of New York’s sloan-Kettering Cancer Center says the research cannot be so easily dismissed. “There is no way in the world, having read this information, that I would have one of these chips implanted in my skin, or in one of my family members.” From THE WEEK Sept 28, 20007
