TERT and hepatocellular carcinoma: Figure 3 shows HBV genome integration in a region close to the TERT promoter. Telomerase activity, which restores the length of telomere repeat arrays, is frequently observed in various malignancies, including HCC. As TERT is a protooncogene, the integration of HBV could result in hepatocarcinogenesis through its amplification and/or overexpression [37].