About the study
Starting in Spring 2026, we will be inviting participants in the UK COSMOS Study to take part in a new online follow-up survey.
If you have received an email invitation from the UK COSMOS Study team, it is because you previously participated in the study and agreed to be contacted about future research activities. It is entirely up to you whether you decide to participate in this Study. Text message invitations from COSMOS study may be sent if we think your email invitation hasn’t reached you.
To take part, simply follow the instructions provided in your invitation email. The online questionnaire will take approximately 30-45 minutes to complete.
The survey will ask about your health, lifestyle, and other factors that may influence long-term health and wellbeing. We are specifically interested in understanding how patterns of mobile phone use and other environmental and lifestyle factors may be related to health outcomes over time.
At the end of the survey, you will be invited to do an online hearing test and a cognitive test. The assessment will take around 10 minutes to complete, and you can choose to view a summary report of your test scores relative to all other people who have undertaken the test.
Even if you no longer live in the UK, your participation remains valuable. If you take part, please answer questions relating to the period when you were living in the UK, where applicable.
The information collected will help researchers better understand the factors that influence health and wellbeing throughout adulthood and support future public health research.
We greatly appreciate your continued contribution to the UK COSMOS Study.
More information about the UK COSMOS Study, including what participation involves and how your data will be used, can be found in the UK COSMOS Participant Information Sheet and the Privacy notice below.
COSMOS study documents
For Participants
I haven’t heard from the study in a while. Am I still enrolled?
You are still enrolled in the study. COSMOS is a long-term project and will continue for many years. We try to avoid contacting participants unnecessarily, but this does not mean we have forgotten about you. We are currently undertaking the next survey in Spring 2026. It is vital that participants continue to take part so that we can continue to monitor possible health effects from use of mobile phones and digital technologies over the long term.
I no longer live in the UK. Can I still take part?
Your data remains valuable to our study – We would still like to continue following your health, and it is helpful for us to keep your information in case you return to the UK in the future. If you have moved, please update your address by emailing us at ukcosmos@imperial.ac.uk.
If your contact information has changed, please let us know by emailing: ukcosmos@imperial.ac.uk
If possible, include your 8-digit Personal ID, which can be found on any recent correspondence from us, such as a survey invitation.
How is my information being kept confidential?
Your privacy and the appropriate use and protection of your data are paramount. Imperial College London will ensure that the research complies fully with current data protection legislation, including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.
All individually identifiable data (such as name and address) will be dealt with in the strictest confidence. Your individually identifiable data will be separated from health and mobile phone use information to preserve confidentiality. All your data will be stored in a dedicated secure ISO 27001 certified research computing environment at Imperial College.
Will my data be shared with any other researchers?
Data may be shared with researchers of the international COSMOS consortium or with other researchers and research collaborators. However, no individually identifying information (such as names, addresses, phone numbers) will ever be passed onto these research groups.
Do you have any queries about your data?
If you have any queries about your data, please contact:
UK COSMOS Team: ukcosmos@imperial.ac.uk
Data Protection Officer, Imperial College London: dpo@imperial.ac.uk
If you are not satisfied with our response or believe your data is being used unlawfully, you may contact the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).
Visit https://ico.org.uk/global/contact-us or email: casework@ico.org.uk
Am I able to withdraw from the study?
COSMOS participants have the right to withdraw at any time, without providing a reason. If you are considering withdrawing from the study, please email us at ukcosmos@imperial.ac.uk.
To help us identify your record, please include your full name, date of birth, address, mobile number, and your personal ID (it can be found on any recent correspondence from us, such as a survey invitation).
If you decide to withdraw, you must choose one of the following options concerning future contact and data access:
1) No further contact – this means that COSMOS would no longer contact you directly but would still have your permission to retain and use information provided previously and to obtain and use further information from your health records.
2) No further access – this means that COSMOS would no longer contact you or obtain further information from your health records in the future but would still have your permission to use the information provided previously.
If you do not specify an option when you withdraw, we will apply the no further contact option by default. Please note that we cannot remove data already used in completed analyses.