We observed that though the expression of COL1A1 mRNA was elevated in pre-malignant cirrhotic liver (4.24-fold, p = 1.12 × 10−10), it was significantly much higher in the HCC samples (6.08-fold, p = 4.54 × 10−13), compared to normal liver tissue samples from the GSE14323 cohort (Figure 2A). This evidence concerns the gene COL1A1 and hepatocellular carcinoma.