Pancreatic Cancer Projected to Become the Second-Most Cancer-Related Death in U.S.

A new report published Monday has officials predicting that by 2030, pancreatic cancer will become the second most cancer-related death in the United States.

While lung cancer remains the top killer, pancreatic and liver cancers are expected to surpass this health issue as the second and third leading cause of death, according to CNN. 

For the research, study authors examined increased cancer death rates between 2006 and 2010, combined with various factors including U.S. demographic changes. They discovered that as better treatments and screening have helped decrease cancer rates overall, particularly in breast, colorectal and prostate cancers, other cancers such as bladder, liver, leukemia and pancreatic cancers are expected to increase.

"Overall, the cancer death rate in the U.S. is declining each year," said study author Lynn Matrisian, vice president of research and medical affairs with the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network in Manhattan Beach, Calif., via WebMD. "And the numbers of deaths caused by several major cancers such as lung, colorectal and breast are following that trend and dropping. However, little progress has been made with pancreatic cancer, and we've known that it was not following that trend."

Many health officials believe that the increasing number of people between the ages of 65 and older may be a partial reason for the increase, according to Live Science. Changes in minority groups can also affect the risk of certain cancers, with African Americans at a greater risk for pancreatic cancer than other races.

Despite the future, officials remain hopeful with ideas to effectively treat the predicted increase. 

"It's now time to realize that we need to start turning the tide on pancreatic cancer with the same kind of tools," Martisan added, via Live Science.

More information regarding the findings can be seen via the American Association for Cancer Research's journal.