In this study, we were the first to reveal that the expression of a major spliced variant of wk-MTA1, MTA1dE4 (exon 4-excluded form of MTA1), but not the total wk-MTA1, is associated with more malignant characteristics of woodchuck HCC, including multiple tumors and a larger size. Here, MTA1 is linked to hepatocellular carcinoma.