Highlights Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is one of the most lethal malignancies, which is usually diagnosed at an advanced stage. Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) have been recognized to play a central role in PDAC pathogenesis and could be used as biomarkers for PDAC. microRNAs (miRs) can act either as oncogenes or tumour suppressors in PDAC. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are around 25% of the total RNA distribution in the human cell and their deregulation is widely implicated in PDAC carcinogenesis. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) can be potential novel biomarkers and therapeutic targets for PDAC diagnosis and treatment via their function as miR molecular "sponges", RNA-binding protein (RBP) sponges, protein translators and gene transcription regulators.