Two Women. One Shared Purpose.
By Eileen O’Connor
Director and Co-founder, EM Radiation Research Trust
16th July, 2026
On the eleventh anniversary of our University of Liverpool presentation, Discovering Cancer: From Grassroots to Global (16 July 2015), I reflect on an extraordinary friendship that began with a personal search for answers after I was diagnosed with cancer while living near a mobile phone mast in my own community.
That journey led to a deeper understanding of the experiences of others and eventually grew into an international collaboration seeking answers through research, dialogue and a commitment to public health.
A personal tribute to my dear friend, colleague and fellow campaigner, Susan Foster
On 16 July 2015, Susan Foster and I stood together at the University of Liverpool to present Discovering Cancer: From Grassroots to Global, a presentation that brought together the experiences of communities, firefighters, independent scientific research and the importance of listening to those whose concerns are often overlooked.
Looking back eleven years later, I realise that day was about much more than science. It was about the human stories behind the research, the people who became ill, the families searching for answers and the communities asking to be heard.
Although an ocean separates us, Susan has become one of my closest friends.
Our story began in the early 2000s. After my own experience of cancer and seeing so many people in my community struggling with illness while living near a mobile phone mast, I began searching for answers and trying to understand what was happening around us.
Neither of us knew then that our separate journeys would eventually become one.
I first came to know Susan through her work with the California firefighters. I shared her findings with firefighters in Liverpool, helping support concerns that ultimately contributed to the removal of antennas from the firefighter training tower in Sefton following the discovery of a cancer and illness cluster surrounding the fire station.
In November 2010, I travelled to California to speak at the Commonwealth Club of California during the international programme Health Effects of Cell Phones, Wireless Technologies & Electromagnetic Fields.
That was the first time Susan and I met in person. We began exchanging research, ideas and information, and it felt as though we had known one another for years. From that moment on, we became not only colleagues but lifelong friends.
Photo: Susan and me in San Diego, where a professional collaboration became a lifelong friendship.
Over the years, Susan has visited my home in the UK, and I have visited hers in the United States. Some of my happiest memories are not from conferences or meetings but from simply spending time together, talking, laughing and putting the world to rights.
The University of Liverpool presentation in July 2015 brought together many years of work. Reflecting on that day eleven years later, Susan shared her thoughts on why identifying and documenting disease clusters remains as important today as it was then.
Susan Foster wrote:
“Prior to this talk at the University of Liverpool we had several identified clusters of illness, certainly Wishaw’s cancer cluster with residents living in the shadow of a large cell tower, and the neurological damage to California firefighters living and working in a station with a 2G tower in their front yard. All firefighters who underwent SPECT brain scan testing were found to have brain damage after a five-year exposure. Now we know about the Ripon, California cancer cluster with a Sprint cell tower on the Weston Elementary school grounds with four students and three teachers being diagnosed with cancer including kidney, brain, liver and lymphoma. In addition, two preschool-age children living close to the school were diagnosed with cancer, as well as a 22-year-old former Weston student. On the East Coast, nestled in the Berkshire Mountains, is the town of Pittsfield where a Verizon tower that was activated in 2020 has triggered a cluster of neurological and immunological illnesses, including cancer, early onset dementia, cognitive impairment, cardiac arrhythmia, cardiac death and electromagnetic sensitivity. It is important to identify these clusters and make them public. Legacy media is not addressing the health impacts of cell tower radiation nor are they addressing the fact that the RF regulatory standards in the United States are 30 years old, obsolete, and they were standards set to facilitate the telecom industry rather than protect human life.”
Susan’s reflections remind us that the questions we explored together at the University of Liverpool remain as relevant today as they were eleven years ago.
Together we spoke about the Wishaw, Sutton Coldfield cancer cluster experience, the California firefighters, independent scientific research and the importance of listening to communities whose voices are so often overlooked.
The title of our presentation, Discovering Cancer: From Grassroots to Global, perfectly reflected our journey. What began with local concerns had become an international collaboration involving scientists, doctors, firefighters, campaigners, lawyers, parliamentarians and communities from around the world. Over the years we have challenged the rollout of mobile phone masts, smart meters, Wi-Fi and 5G.
Looking back over more than two decades, I realise that some of life’s greatest gifts arrive unexpectedly. I set out to understand what had happened in my own community. I never imagined that journey would lead me to one of the finest friends anyone could hope to have.
References
University of Liverpool
Discovering Cancer: From Grassroots to Global
16 July 2015
Our joint presentation bringing together the Wishaw experience, the California firefighters, independent science and the importance of precaution in public health.
https://radiationresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/Eileen-OConnor-and_Susan_Foster.pdf
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Commonwealth Club of California
Health Effects of Cell Phones, Wireless Technologies & Electromagnetic Fields
18 November 2010
https://electromagnetichealth.org/electromagnetic-health-blog/cc-video/
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Susan Foster’s Work with the Fire Fighters
Resolution 15 – International Association of Fire Fighters (2004)
Following the California firefighter study, Susan Foster wrote Resolution 15, which was overwhelmingly adopted by the IAFF. The resolution called for a major health study and opposed the siting of cellular antennas on fire stations until they were proven safe. You can read the original resolution here:
https://www.radiationresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Resolution_15_IAFF.pdf
A Cautionary Tale from the Firefighters of California Fighting Cell Towers on Stations (2020)
In this important article, Susan reflects on nearly two decades of work with firefighters, the original California study and the continuing implications for first responders and public health.
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Susan has served as an adviser to the Radiation Research Trust, contributing her expertise, research, writing and unwavering support to countless campaigns promoting independent science, transparency and the protection of public health.
Photo: A journey travelled together, Susan and me at the Titanic Hotel, Liverpool.
Dedicated to Susan Foster
With gratitude for your friendship, your integrity, and your unwavering commitment to protecting others.
Eileen O’Connor
Director and Co-founder
EM Radiation Research Trust
UK registered charity established in 2003
Registered Charity No. 1106304
