Breast cancer incidence and survival in elderly women during the 1989–2012 period: A population-based study in a French area

•Distinctive clinical characteristics were observed for tumors diagnosed among elderly women including more metastatic stage at diagnosis.•Among elderly women, the average annual incidence increased between 1989 and 2012. Incidence trends among women aged 50–74 were not similar.•Overall and net survival at 10 years were lower for women aged ≥75 years compared to women aged 50–74 years.•A greater disease severity at the time of diagnosis and less effective treatments given to elderly patients are the most plausible explanations for these lower net survival rates.