Moreover, interaction between HCC and CAFs has been shown to act as a positive feedback loop; CAFs promote the initiation and growth of HCC in vivo by inducing expression of forkhead box Q1 (FOXQ1) and therefore transactivating N-myc downstream-regulated gene 1 (NDRG1) in HCC cells, which induces CCL26 secretion and thus recruits more CAFs to promote HCC progression [46]. Here, NDRG1 is linked to hepatocellular carcinoma.