miRNAs, a major class of small noncoding RNAs approximately 18-25 nucleotides in length, function by repressing the expression of target genes through binding to complementary sequences in the 3'-UTRs of target genes. Emerging evidence has highlighted their important roles in numerous diseases, including human cancers. Recently, miR-190 has been shown to be dysregulated in various types of human cancers that participates in cancer-related biological processes, including proliferation, apoptosis, metastasis, drug resistance, by regulating associated target genes, and to predict cancer diagnosis and prognosis. In this review, we summarized the roles of miR-190-5p in human diseases, especially in human cancers. Then we classified its target genes in tumorigenesis and progression, which might provide evidence for cancer diagnosis and prognosis, promising tools for cancer treatment, or leads for further investigation.