Embodiments concern methods and compositions involving miR-34 mimics, including miR-34a and miR-34c mimics. In some embodiments, there are double-stranded RNA molecules with modified nucleotides having an active strand with a miR-34a sequence and a complementary passenger strand. In additional embodiments, there are double-stranded RNA molecules with modified nucleotides having an active strand with a miR-34c sequence and a complementary passenger strand.