Demethylation of both MAGE-A1 and -A3 promoters (n=22) was found more frequently in gastric cancer patients in advanced clinical stages (P=0.0035), and these patients also exhibited a higher incidence of lymph node metastasis (P=0.0007) compared to those patients without demethylation (n=25). This evidence concerns the gene MAGEA1 and metastatic malignant neoplasm in the lymph nodes.