Importantly, ROC curve analysis on 41 paired specimens revealed that although MYSM1 did not differentiate between primary CRC tumors and normal control tissue, with an AUC of 0.570 (P = 0.277), the possibility of metastasis was identifiable, with an AUC of 0.735 (P <  0.001) (Additional file 18: Figure S8D). Here, MYSM1 is linked to colorectal carcinoma.