Therefore, a profibrogenic liver microenvironment promotes the EMT of hepatocytes that are induced by hypoxia and TGF-β signaling and lead to an increase in fibroblast generation, thereby faithfully fulfilling the role of an intermediate stem cell and contributing to the composition of a protumoral liver microenvironment and HCC development. Here, TGFB1 is linked to hepatocellular carcinoma.