ERCC5 and metastatic malignant neoplasm in the lymph nodes: According to univariate survival analysis, the expression level of XPG was not an independent prognostic factor (P = 0.491), while macroscopic type (P = 0.002), TNM stage (P<0.001), lymph node metastasis (P<0.001) and depth of invasion (P<0.001) were all significant prognostic factors (Table 1).