AKT1 and hepatocellular carcinoma: It has been previously investigated that in HCC, the platelet-derived growth factor receptor (PDGFR) and vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) signaling cascades and pathways such as Wnt-catenin, hedgehog, phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt/mTOR, IGF, tyrosine-protein kinase c-MET and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), show altered activity (Kudo, 2008).