SOX2 and neoplasm: Here, we found that BMI1, CD44, SOX2, OCT4, UBE2C, CXCR4 CSCs marker genes are significantly upregulated, while IGF1-R, KLF4, ALDH1A1, CD133, FAM3C are downregulated in the tumor core vs healthy mucosa of 24 patients with OSCC.