In cervical cancer cells, USP7 directly binds to the MRN (MRE11-RAD50-NBS1)-MDC1 (mediator of DNA damage checkpoint protein 1) complex and deubiquitinates and stabilizes MDC1, which results in the maintenance of the DNA damage response (DDR) (Su et al., 2018). Here, MDC1 is linked to cervical carcinoma.