摘要Objective Background-study on genesis and development of tumor is mainly concentrated on gene mutation in nucleus. In recent years, however, the role of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutation in tumor genesis has been given more and more attention, which is the only extra-nucleus DNA in cells of higher animals. Carcinoma of the uterine cervix is a common tumor in gynecology, but there are few reports of mtDNA mutation in this area. The focus of this study was to investigate the mtDNA mutation in tumor tissues of cervical carcinomas and their relationship to tumorigenesis and tumor development. Methods The D-loop region of 24 cervical carcinomas together with the adjacent normal tissues were amplified by PCR and sequenced. Results Among the 24 cervical carcinomas, 30 mutations in 9 patients′ specimen were identified with the mutations rate of 37.5%(9/24). There were 8 microsatellite instabilities among the mutations and 13 new polymorphisms which were not reported previously in the Genbank. Conclusions The D-loop region of mitochondrial DNA is a highly polymorphoric and mutable region and the mutation rate is relatively high in patients with cervical carcinomas.