STC1 and hepatocellular carcinoma: Since the expression of STC1 was positively correlated to the levels of IL6 and IL8 in HCC tumors, whereas IL-6 and IL-8 is known to exert pro-carcinogenic effects in HCC [36], the effect of STC1 on IL-6- or IL-8-elicited cell migration was investigated using HCC cell-lines.