AKT1 and colorectal cancer: Beyond EMT, ERO1α enhances cell proliferation and suppresses apoptosis in colorectal cancer by activating the PI3K/AKT pathway (Wu et al., 2023), supports gastric tumor progression through Akt and JNK signaling (Seol et al., 2016), and in pancreatic cancer, activates the Wnt/β-catenin axis to stimulate migration, invasion, and proliferation (Takei et al., 2019; Takei et al., 2017).