PROK2 and metastatic malignant neoplasm in the lymph nodes: The multivariate analysis of these factors revealed that positive PROK2 expression [hazards ratio (HR), 2.119; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.315–3.415; p = 0.002], histological type (HR, 2.688; 95% CI, 1.425–4.995; p = 0.002), and lymph node metastasis (HR, 2.311; 95% CI, 1.149–3.764; p = 0.001) were significant independent prognostic indicators for RFS in patients with CRC (Table 3).