Given evidence from various cancers indicating that inflammatory factors, such as IL6, TNF or IFN, are regulated by GLI1, and that the Hh pathway is involved in cancer immunity [24], we hypothesise that the Hh pathway in HCC cells may mediate the production of cytokines or chemokines that promote monocyte infiltration, thereby modulating the tumour microenvironment to support tumour growth and metastasis. Here, TNF is linked to neoplasm.