In further analysis when the cohort was segregated into those with mild (F0–1) versus advanced fibrosis (F2–4), carriage of each copy of the MICA rs2596542 (T) allele was associated consistently with a significant increased risk of advanced fibrosis, independent of age, gender, BMI, HCV genotype and alcohol intake (OR: 1.47, 95% CI: 1.05–2.06, p = 0.02) (Supplementary Table 6). Here, MICA is linked to fibrosis.