AFP and neoplasm: HCC, in its very early stage, is heterogeneous both in terms of liver function (i.e., presence or absence of PH, Model for End stage Liver Disease score, Child Pugh score 5 or 6, bilirubin level) and tumour characteristics (i.e., location, alpha-fetoprotein values, pathological features such as micro-vascular invasion, tumour grade and satellitosis).