H19 long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) has many functions in cancer. Some studies have reported that H19 acts as an oncogene and is involved in cancer progression by activating epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), the cell cycle and angiogenesis via mechanisms like microRNA (miRNA) sponging – the binding to and inhibition of miRNA activity. This makes H19 lncRNA a potential target for cancer therapeutics. However, several conflicting studies have also found that H19 suppresses tumour development. In this review, we shed light on the possible reasons for these conflicting findings. We also summarise the current literature on the applications of H19 lncRNA in cancer therapy in many cancers and explore new avenues for future research. This includes the use of H19 in recombinant vectors, chemoresistance, epigenetic regulation, tumour microenvironment alteration and cancer immunotherapy. The relationship between H19 and the master tumour suppressor gene p53 is also explored. In most studies, H19 knockdown via RNA interference (RNAi) or epigenetic silencing inhibits cancer development. Thus, H19 lncRNA could be a promising target for the development of cancer therapeutics. This warrants further investigations into its translational research to improve cancer therapy outcomes.

H19长非编码RNA（lncRNA）在癌症中具有许多功能。一些研究报告说，H19充当致癌基因，并通过激活上皮-间质转化（EMT），细胞周期和血管生成，通过诸如microRNA（miRNA）海绵化（与miRNA结合和抑制）的机制参与癌症的进展。这使得H19 lncRNA成为癌症治疗的潜在靶标。但是，一些相互矛盾的研究也发现H19抑制肿瘤的发展。在这篇综述中，我们阐明了这些矛盾发现的可能原因。我们还总结了有关H19 lncRNA在许多癌症的癌症治疗中的应用的最新文献，并探索了未来研究的新途径。这包括在重组载体中使用H19，化学抗性，表观遗传调控，肿瘤微环境改变和癌症免疫治疗。还探讨了H19与肿瘤抑制基因p53的关系。在大多数研究中，通过RNA干扰（RNAi）或表观遗传沉默抑制H19可以抑制癌症的发展。因此，H19 lncRNA可能成为癌症治疗方法发展的有希望的目标。这值得对其转化研究进行进一步研究以改善癌症治疗结果。