Cervical cancer is the fourth leading cause of
cancer-related death among women worldwide. The chemotherapeutical agent
cisplatin, a small
platinum-based compound, is considered as the standard
therapy for locally advanced
cervical cancer or recurrent
cancers, sometimes in combination with
radiotherapy or other drugs. However, drug resistance and radio-resistance phenomena could reduce the life expectancy of
cervical cancer patients. Resistance mechanisms are complex and often involve multiple cellular pathways in which
microRNAs (
miRNAs) play a fundamental role.
miRNAs are a class of endogenous non-coding small RNAs responsible for post-transcriptional gene regulation. Convincing evidence demonstrates that several deregulated
miRNAs are important regulators in the onset of drug and radioresistance in
cervical cancer, thus underlying their potential applications in a clinical setting. In this review, we summarized the mechanisms by which
miRNAs affect both
cisplatin and radioresistance in
cervical cancer. We also described the regulatory loops between
miRNAs and lncRNAs promoting drug resistance. Besides, we reported evidence for the role of
miRNAs in sensitizing
cancer cells to
cisplatin-based
chemotherapy, and provided some suggestions for the development of new combined
therapies for
cervical cancer.