Single cell landscape of potential mechanisms in primary and metastatic hepatocellular carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma metastasis occurs mainly in the portal vein and lymph node metastasis, and is the main cause of patient death. However, the cellular origins and driving mechanisms of hepatocellular carcinoma metastasis have not been elucidated. In this study, we found that different tumor metastasis samples originated from different branches of the primary tumor subclone. A large number of sequence data confirmed the correlation between tumor metastasis index and metastasis and prognosis. Patients with a high index generally had a poor prognosis and abnormal metabolic function. Finally, we recommended a candidate therapy for each metastatic direction. This study explains the cellular origin and underlying mechanisms of hepatocellular carcinoma metastasis at the single-cell level and identifies drugs for its targeted therapy. It also provides a new research idea for the study of hepatocellular carcinoma metastasis and early identification of cancer metastasis from cellular resolution.