The State Health Department has authorized a $3-million study into whether shale gas operations have raised the risk of rare, childhood cancers within the Canon-MacMillan School District and throughout the region. According to reports, the grant specifically will fund a ‘case control study of childhood cancers, including ewing sarcoma, in light of the concerns raised about the number of rare cancers in the area’. The study will use data from the State Cancer Registry and Cancer Referral Centers and will try to determine if there is an elevated cancer prevalence in areas affected by shale gas development. The announcement also says that a second study will focus on ‘acute conditions’ like asthma and birth outcomes that have previously shown some relations to certain industries. An academic research center will perform the studies but one has not yet been identified.