HOTAIR expression was significantly greater in the serum of cervical cancer patients. The results indicated that this increase was significantly associated with tumour size, lymphovascular space invasion, and lymph node metastasis. HOTAIR knockdown inhibited these properties and increased apoptosis. In vivo xenograft experiments using the HOTAIR-overexpressing SiHa cell line revealed that HOTAIR was a strong inducer of tumour growth and modulated the expression of epithelial-mesenchymal transition and Notch-Wnt signalling pathway-related genes.