ADAM17 and colorectal carcinoma: In a study of 164 patients with CRC, the concentration of serum IL-6, the ligand to IL-6R cleaved by ADAM17 [31, 34], was associated with CRC progression and, therefore, may be a useful tumor marker to monitor the treatment course; nevertheless, serum IL-6 was not an effective independent prognostic indicator in that study [64].