Because IL-6/STAT3 signaling was hyper-activated in HCC tissues secondary to TACE treatment and p-STAT3 reinforced HIF-1α expression in HCC cells, we next sought to figure out whether IL-6/STAT3 pathway played the critical role in up-regulation of HIF-1α driven by hypoxia. The gene discussed is STAT3; the disease is hepatocellular carcinoma.