Cancer cells within these tumors are highly proliferative. As such, this can result in a lack of sufficient nutrients to some cells; leading to their starvation. As these starved cells die off, a build up of dead cancer cells will begin to form inside the tumor. These groups of necrotic cells are often referred to as comedones, hence the classification of this type of high-grade DCIS as "comedo necrosis". As of yet, it is still unclear the mechanism by which DCIS of the breast develop into a comedo-type morphology. However, a strong correlation between Tenascin and DCIS nuclear grade has been shown. In a pathological analysis, tenascin was present in all excised tissue from carcinomas. It was found that there were variations in the expression patterns of tenascin in comedo DCIS<unk>  versus non-comedo DCIS. Specifically, numerous and thick tenascin bands were found in the surrounding stroma of comedo DCIS whereas non-comedo DCIS had a single thin tenascin band surrounding them. The difference in these expression patterns implicates Tenascin as a possible factor in the development of the comedo-type morphology in carcinomas.
Comedocarcinoma
Mucinous carcinoma
Ductal carcinoma
Peritoneal mesothelioma
Clear-cell ovarian carcinoma
Adenocarcinoma
Tubular carcinoma
Eccrine carcinoma