HIF1A and cancer: During cancer metastasis, HIF-1α in hypoxic microenvironments transcriptionally increases various transcripts related to stimulation of cell migration and invasion, including fibronectin 1 (FN1), urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR), lysyl oxidase-like 2 (LOXL2), and matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) [8].