Potential Prognostic and Metastatic Implications of MACC1 and MMP8 in Colorectal Cancer

Colorectal cancer (CRC) remains a major cause of cancer-related morbidity and mortality worldwide. Metastasis regulators and matrix metalloproteinases have been implicated in tumor progression; however, their clinical significance in CRC remains incompletely defined. In this study, the prognostic value of MACC1 and MMP8 expression levels was investigated. A total of 140 patients diagnosed with CRC and 48 healthy controls were included. Serum levels of MACC1 and MMP8 were measured using ELISA. Clinicopathological parameters were recorded, and their associations with biomarker expression were analyzed. Both MACC1 and MMP8 levels demonstrated moderate diagnostic performance with comparable area under the curve values. A strong positive correlation between MACC1 and MMP8 expression was observed. MACC1 expression was significantly associated with metastasis status and tumor stage, whereas MMP8 expression was associated with tumor localization. In survival analyses, established clinicopathological factors, particularly tumor stage and metastasis status, were identified as the primary determinants of overall survival. In multivariate analysis, tumor stage remained the only consistent independent prognostic factor, while MMP8 showed a modest independent association in a separate model. MACC1 did not retain independent prognostic significance. Although MACC1 and MMP8 may have diagnostic and biological relevance in CRC, their prognostic utility appears limited compared to established clinical parameters. Further large-scale prospective studies are needed.