Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most commonly diagnosed cancer of the liver and the fourth leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide, with China accounting for over half of the global annual cases and deaths. Hepatectomy is the standard curative-intent treatment option for appropriately selected patients with localized HCC. However, the high postoperative recurrence rate causes many patients to have a poor prognosis and a high incidence of cancer-specific death. This occurs in especially early recurrence within the first year after surgery, which is most likely due to occult micro-metastasis from the original tumor. Given that survival among patients with recurrence…