ALX4 and colorectal carcinoma: When methylation was analyzed as a continuous variable, we observed a trend for higher methylation of TWIST1, IGFBP3, ALX4, and GAS7 (p<0.05) and older patients with CRC; however, we did not find a positive correlation between normal colonic mucosa methylation in these genes and age in healthy individuals (Figures 3 & 4).