HCC is the most common pathological type of primary liver cancer and accounts for approximately 75 % to 85 % of cases [1]. There is no favorable prognosis for HCC patients with an overall median survival of approximately 29.8 months [2]. Although curative surgical resection is considered the first-line treatment for early-stage HCC patients with well-preserved liver function [3], postoperative recurrence is a major risk to long-term survival with a 5 years recurrence rate of 70 % [4]. Early recu…