Although it was not in the top 20 of significantly upregulated genes, we also noted an increased expression of SALL4 in CLDN6-expressing EAC and GAC: SALL4 is associated with crucial biological functions in stem cells and was associated with tumorigenesis and epithelial-mesenchymal transition in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and overall “stemness” in various other tumors [39, 40]. Here, SALL4 is linked to esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.