SPATS2 and hepatocellular carcinoma: We finally obtained 12 upregulated genes (KPNA2, CDK1, MCM3, SPATS2, TARBP1, PRC1, RRM2, FEN1, NT5DC2, LRRC1, MCM6, and RNASEH2A) by selecting overlapping genes between the hypomethylation set and those for which expression was negatively associated with overall survival (OS) and disease free survival (DFS) in HCC patients (Figure 3B).