OBJECTIVE: To study the expression level of the long non-coding ribonucleic acid (lncRNA) KCNQ1 overlapping transcript 1 (KCNQ1OT1) in the patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), as well as the correlation between the expression level of lncRNA KCNQ1OT1 and the clinical diagnosis and prognosis of MDS. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 60 MDS patients were selected as the MDS group and 20 healthy people as the control group. The expression levels of lncRNA KCNQ1OT1 in the serum of the two groups of participants were compared. The associations of the expression level of lncRNA KCNQ1OT1 with the clinicopathological parameters of the MDS patients were analyzed. MDS was divided into various subtypes in accordance with the World Health Organization (WHO) classification. The expression level of lncRNA KCNQ1OT1 in all the subtypes was detected, and its correlation with the prognosis was judged. RESULTS: There was a statistical difference in the expression level of lncRNA KCNQ1OT1 between the control group and the MDS group (p<0.001). The MDS patients with the low expression of lncRNA KCNQ1OT1 had remarkably longer survival and progression-free survival (PFS) in comparison with those with the high expression of lncRNA KCNQ1OT1 (p<0.001). The survival status and chemosensitivity of the MDS patients were closely related to the prognosis (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: LncRNA KCNQ1OT1 presents high expressions in the MDS patients, indicating that it has a correlation with the prognosis of the MDS patients, and thus providing a new direction for the future treatment of the MDS patients.