VEGFA and hepatocellular carcinoma: The hypoxia-inducible transcription factors (HIFs) regulate cellular metabolism, angiogenesis, proliferation, and migration, enabling a cell to respond to hypoxia (Wilson et al. 2014) and HCC is marked by overexpression of VEGF, which is considered the force driving physiological and pathological angiogenesis (ElGhandour et al. 2021).