AFP and hepatocellular carcinoma: Additionally, the present study clearly shows that miR-101 can be utilized as a non-invasive biomarker for early detection of HCV-associated HCC progression either standalone or with other miRNAs or AFP to discriminate HCV-associated HCC progression, particularly in the early stages, in comparison to other HCV-related liver cirrhosis together with the control group, with a higher sensitivity (92.5%) and specificity (97.5%) than AFP.