CD44 and hepatocellular carcinoma: Notably, Wu and colleagues showed in a murine HCC model that HMMR knockout suppresses tumor growth and enhances macrophage-mediated phagocytosis; mechanistically, RHAMM assembles a cytoplasmic complex that activates (focal adhesion kinase) FAK-SRC-NF-κB signaling to sustain CD47-mediated anti-phagocytic signaling independently of CD44.