Gynecological cancers (GCs) are often diagnosed at advanced stages, limiting the efficacy of available therapeutic options. Thus, there remains an urgent and unmet need for innovative research for the efficient clinical management of GC patients. Research over past several years has revealed the enormous promise of miRNAs. These small non-coding RNAs can aid in the diagnosis, prognosis and therapy of all major GCs, viz., ovarian cancers, cervical cancers and endometrial cancers. Mechanistic details of the miRNAs-mediated regulation of multiple biological functions are under constant investigation, and a number of miRNAs are now believed to influence growth, proliferation, invasion, metastasis, chemoresistance and the relapse of different GCs. Modulation of tumor microenvironment by miRNAs can possibly explain some of their reported biological effects. miRNA signatures have been proposed as biomarkers for the early detection of GCs, even the various subtypes of individual GCs. miRNA signatures are also being pursued as predictors of response to therapies. This review catalogs the knowledge gained from collective studies, so as to assess the progress made so far. It is time to ponder over the knowledge gained, so that more meaningful pre-clinical and translational studies can be designed to better realize the potential that miRNAs have to offer.

Ovarian cancer (OC) is the most lethal gynecological malignancy, which disproportionately affects African American (AA) women. Lack of awareness and socioeconomic factors are considered important players in OC racial health disparity, while at the same time, some recent studies have brought focus on the genetic basis of disparity as well. Differential polymorphisms, mutations and expressions of genes have been reported in OC patients of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. Combined, it appears that neither genetic nor the socioeconomic factors alone might explain the observed racially disparate health outcomes among OC patients. Rather, a more logical explanation would be the one that takes into consideration the combination and/or the interplay of these factors, perhaps even including some environmental ones. Hence, in this article, we attempt to review the available information on OC racial health disparity, and provide an overview of socioeconomic, environmental and genetic factors, as well as the epigenetic changes that can act as a liaison between the three. A better understanding of these underlying causes will help further research on effective cancer management among diverse patient population and ultimately narrow health disparity gaps.

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