Assessment of the TME of advanced HCC liver tissue showed induction of markers involved in inflammation (IL1β, TNFα, IL6, CCL2, CCR2), inflammasome activation (Caspase 1, NLRP3, iNOS), immune suppression (PDL1), angiogenesis (END, CD31, iCAM, vCAM) and fibrosis (αSMA, TGFβ, COL1A) compared to healthy control livers (Figs. 11, 12 and 13A, light grey bars). Here, CCR2 is linked to hepatocellular carcinoma.