New concerns about airport body scanners

The head of a Florida commuter group suggests anyone who flies several times a week may want to avoid airport body scanners in the wake of a cancer report. European authorities banned the machines earlier this month after studies linked them to a small number of cancer cases, the South Florida Sun Sentinel reported Wednesday. Steve Landes, director of the South Florida Airline Commuters Association, said frequent fliers might want to avoid the scanners. "Let's put it this way: I would have to be a fool to say I wouldn't have any concerns," Landes said. The scanners use low-level radiation to detect dangerous items on passengers. The U.S. Transportation Security Administration has declined comment on the Nov. 14 decision by the European Commission to ban the machines at all airports in Europe. The ban was ordered after a PBS Newshour/ProPublica report said that research suggests anywhere from six to 100 U.S. airline passengers each year could get cancer from the scanners.