Abstract: Objective To investigate the expression of long non-coding RNA HOTAIR in cervical cancer tissues and its effects on HeLa cell growth and apoptosis. Methods The expression of HOTAIR in 66 cervical cancer tissues and matched adjacent normal tissues were measured using quantitative real-time RT-PCR and its correlation with the clinical parameters was analyzed. Lentiviral mediated shRNA was used to knockdown HOTAIR in HeLa cells to investigate its role in cell growth and apoptosis. Results HOTAIR expression in cervical cancer tissues was significantly upregulated compared with the matched nontumorous tissues (8.25±0.46 vs. 3.6±0.26; P<0.001); Increased HOTAIR expression was significantly correlated with tumor size(P<0.05), tumor stage(P<0.05) and lymph node metastasis(P<0.05). Knockdown of HOTAIR significantly reduce cell growth, cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 phase, and promoted cell apoptosis. Conclusion High expression of HOTAIR is involved in cervical cancer progression and could be a potential target for diagnosis and gene therapy.