CDC14B is a dual-specificity phosphatase with divergent roles between yeast and humans. Unlike budding yeast Cdc14, which is essential for mitotic exit, human CDC14B is dispensable for chromosome 9 and cytokinesis 1. Instead, CDC14B functions as a regulator of mitotic progression through distinct mechanisms: it dephosphorylates Cdc25 phosphatase and modulates Cdk1/cyclin B activity to ensure proper metaphase/anaphase transition and bipolar spindle formation 2. CDC14B also antagonizes CDK1-mediated phosphorylation of USP9X, regulating WT1-dependent mitotic transcription and survival 3. Recent studies reveal CDC14B's emerging roles in cell fate control, gene expression regulation, and neuronal development 4. CDC14B participates in ciliogenesis, with CDC14B knockout cells showing increased cilia frequency and faster disassembly 5. In cancer biology, CDC14B expression is downregulated in clear cell renal carcinoma, correlating with advanced disease and poor recurrence-free survival 6, while elevated CDC14B in glioblastoma is an independent favorable prognostic biomarker 7. Alternative splicing of CDC14B controlled by Matrin3 regulates mitotic spindle dynamics in colorectal cancer 8.