Implication By understanding Matrix Metalloprotease (MMP) dysregulation from a pan-cancer perspective, this study sheds light on the diagnostic potentials of MMPs across multiple neoplasms. Background MMPs are intriguing genes related to cancer disease progression, functional promotion of angiogenesis, invasion, metastasis, and avoidance of immune surveillance. Many studies have noted these genes are frequently upregulated in cancer. However, expression patterns of all MMPs and their diagnostic and prognostic potential have not been investigated in a pan-cancer perspective. Methods The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) data were used to evaluate diagnostic and prognostic potential of 24 MMPs in fifteen different cancer types. Gene expression measured by RNA-seq was analyzed by differential expression, hierarchical clustering, and ROC analysis for individual genes and in combination. Results MMP1, MMP9 , MMP10 , MMP11 , and MMP13 were almost universally upregulated across all cancers, with significant ( p < 0.05) fold change (FC > 2) in ten of fifteen cancers. MMP3 , MMP7 , MMP12 and MMP14 ) are significantly up-regulated in at least 10 cancer types. Interestingly, MMP2 , MMP7 , MMP23B , MMP27 and MMP28 ) are significantly down-regulated in seven to nine cancer types. Multiple MMPs possess AUC’s > 0.9 in more than one cancer. However, survival analyses suggest that the prognostic value of MMPs is limited to clear cell renal carcinoma. Conclusions Most MMPs have consistently increased gene expression across cancers, while several MMPs have consistently decreased expression in several cancer types. Many MMPs have diagnostic value individually or in combination, while the prognostic value of MMPs is restricted to one subtype of kidney cancer. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12885-019-5768-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.