In a previous study, LOXL2, a gene that promotes VM development and is involved in the regulation of TME, has been validated as a potential diagnostic and prognostic biomarker as well as a therapeutic target for HCC, suggesting that VM-associated genes have the potential to provide new targets and strategies for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (Zhao et al., 2023). Here, LOXL2 is linked to hepatocellular carcinoma.