GLENS FALLS — Five-hundred and sixty-one out of every 100,000 residents in Warren County were diagnosed with an invasive cancer from 2011 to 2015.

That was more than the statewide average of 489 people, and more than any other county in the state, according to the state's registry of local cancer data. But why?

That's precisely what the state Health Department hopes to learn as it embarks on a study of cancer rates in the rural southern Adirondack county. The study — one of four underway statewide — will investigate demographic, behavioral, occupational and environmental factors that might be at play, as well as firsthand accounts from local residents and medical experts.

"Cancer is common in our state and nationally," said Nora Yates, director of the department's Center of Community Health. "Causes of cancer are mostly lifestyle- and smoking-related, so where you have higher incidents of obesity and smoking, you have higher incidents of cancer. But there can be other factors."

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While Warren County has high rates of all types of cancers, the state will be investigating some types more than others, including lung, laryngeal, esophageal and oral cavity (mouth and throat) cancers, as well as brain tumors.

"According to what state officials are saying, they obviously do point out that a lot of those cancers are related to smoking," said Ginelle Jones, director of Warren County Health Services. "We still have a very high rate of smoking in our county — well above the state and national averages."

Roughly 18 percent of county residents smoked tobacco products in 2016, compared to 15 percent statewide and 16 percent nationwide, she said. While that was down from 21 percent in 2009, it's higher than local health officials would like.

The North Country region as a whole has an even higher smoking rate of 22 percent, a statistic that has prompted the Adirondack Health Institute, a regional nonprofit, to push for local laws that would raise the minimum age for purchasing tobacco from 18 to 21.

State health officials declined to speculate about what may be causing the high cancer rates, and said that's exactly what the study hopes to uncover. The Health Department will work with the state Department of Environmental Conservation to examine environmental factors, as well.

The department is asking local residents affected by cancer — as well as medical institutions, large employers and anyone else who may have insight — to attend a public hearing on the study on Thursday, July 19, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at SUNY Adirondack in Queensbury.

Cancer is the second leading cause of death in New York with more 110,000 people diagnosed each year — 35,000 of whom die from the disease. Last fall, Gov. Andrew Cuomo — whose longtime partner Sandra Lee has battled breast cancer — announced he would be launching a statewide cancer research initiative aimed at enhancing prevention efforts and improving access to diagnosis and treatment.

Four sites were chosen for in-depth studies based on elevated incidences of cancer. The others are in Western New York and downstate.