(14)demonstrated that CHI3L1 plays a particularly prominent role in hepatocellular carcinoma, where it promotes the growth and metastasis of liver tumors by regulating SMAD family members (SMAD-2 and SMAD-3), affecting the TGF-β signaling pathway and thereby promoting liver tumor growth and metastasis. Here, SMAD2 is linked to hepatocellular carcinoma.