BCL2 and hepatocellular carcinoma: Furthermore, the Mcl-1 (myeloid cell leukemia sequence 1) protein, an antiapoptotic member of Bcl-2 family, which is usually overexpressed in a variety of human cancers including HCC [12] and plays a pivotal role in protecting cells from apoptosis and tumor carcinogenesis [13], was identified as a direct target of miR-20a.