VEGFA and cancer: The hub genes included VEGFA, AKT1, TNF, HIF1A, EGFR, JUN, STAT3, MMP9, EGF, and MAPK3. Hypoxia is a common feature of the cancer microenvironment and contributes to OSCC development, progression, and therapy resistance [30], where hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF-1) is a key transcription factor that regulates cellular response to hypoxia [31].