ILKAP and gastric cancer: In summary, we have demonstrated that MAEL expression may serve as an unfavorable prognostic marker for GC patients and defined a novel oncogenic pathway for MAEL. Ectopic expression of MAEL stimulates the phosphorylation and activation of p38, CHK1 and RSK2 by inducing the degradation of the phosphatase ILKAP, which facilitates tumor growth and metastasis.