Although several lines of evidence have established that sorafenib induces a protective form of autophagy for HCC cell survival, a recent study demonstrated that sorafenib and its kinase-independent derivative, SC-59, induced autophagic cell death and apoptosis by disrupting the myeloid cell leukemia-1 (MCL-1)-beclin 1 complex in HCC cells and PLC5 xenograft nude mice [64]. This evidence concerns the gene MCL1 and hepatocellular carcinoma.