Abstract
It is increasingly evident that long noncoding RNAs may play the roles of both oncogenes and tumor suppressors during cancer development. A new study from Piipponen et al. provides evidence that a long noncoding RNA, PICSAR, promotes cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma development through activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase signaling. Because specific inhibition of PICSAR suppresses tumor growth, this long noncoding RNA may serve as a useful diagnostic marker and therapeutic target for cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma.