Micro Endoscope

Researchers say the aging population, women older than 70 will account for a growing proportion of breast cancer cases.

The rate of ER-positive breast cancer has been on the rise for decades, so it’s no surprise that more U.S. women will be diagnosed with the disease in coming years, said Dr. Graham Colditz, of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

The researchers predict that in 2030, roughly 441,000 U.S. women will be diagnosed with the disease — up from 283,000 in 2011.

The Rate is expected to rise by 0.5 percent each year among women age 70 and up. The increase will be even greater among women ages 50 to 69 — at around 0.9 percent.

The elderly population will swell by 2030, those women will account for a growing proportion of breast cancer cases — 35 percent, Rosenberg’s team predicts, versus 24 percent in 2011.

Cases among women ages 50 to 69 could decline from 55 percent to 44 percent.

That’s important, Rosenberg said, because elderly women are typically left out of breast cancer treatment trials. Yet in the “real world,” doctors will be seeing more and more patients in that age group, he pointed out.