RAN and cancer: Since the global impairment of mature miRNAs is emerging as a common feature of human tumors (Melo et al., 2010), and given the critical functions of Drosha, DGCR8, Exportin-5, Ran, and Dicer in miRNA biogenesis, it is logical to presume that genetic polymorphisms in these genes may affect the processing of miRNAs and, thus, cancer risk.