CXCL12 and hepatocellular carcinoma: Wang and colleagues categorized CAFs into a total of six distinct subtypes in HCC utilizing scRNA gene expression profiles: STMN1+ CAFs, CXCL12+ CAFs, MYH11+ CAFs, SEPT7+ CAFs, POSTN+ CAFs, and CD36+ CAFs, and they specifically focused on the newly discovered POSTN+ CAF subpopulation, which plays a crucial role in promoting the progression of HCC through the activation of the ECM, hypoxia and TGF-β signaling pathways (37).