Indeed, many studies have found that the expressions of CXCL12 and CXCR4 in peripheral blood of HCC patients are significantly increased, and CXCR4 expression is positively correlated with lymph node metastasis and poor outcome of HCC, affecting the prognosis of HCC patients (Xiang et al., 2009; Neve Polimeno et al., 2014; Toraih et al., 2016; Qin L. F. et al., 2018). Here, CXCL12 is linked to hepatocellular carcinoma.