Medical Oncologist
CION Cancer Clinics
Airway stents: opening a windpipe narrowed by cancer | CION Cancer Clinics
An airway stent is a tube placed inside the windpipe or a main breathing tube to hold open a section that cancer has narrowed. It is put in with a camera through the mouth, usually under general anaesthesia. When breathlessness comes from that narrowing, breathing often eases soon afterwards. It does not treat the cancer, and it needs care at home to keep mucus from blocking it. CION Cancer Clinics’ surgical oncologists in Hyderabad can talk this through with you.
MI
Medically reviewed by Dr. Mohammed ImaduddinConsultant Surgical Oncologist · MBBS, MS (General Surgery), MCh (Surgical Oncology) · last reviewed September 2026, next review due September 2027
17+specialists on panel
15,000+patients treated
35+centres across Telangana & AP
4.8★ / 800+Google rating
On this page
- How does an airway stent help when cancer narrows the windpipe?
- What kinds of airway stent are there?
- What happens when an airway stent is placed?
- What do the words on the bronchoscopy report mean?
- What do families often believe about airway stents?
- Who is an airway stent not suitable for, and what should you ask?
- Common questions about airway stents
The short answer
How does an airway stent help when cancer narrows the windpipe?
An airway stent is a tube placed inside the windpipe or a main breathing tube to hold open a section that cancer has squeezed or blocked. For many people, breathing becomes noticeably easier soon after it is placed.
How cancer narrows the airway
The windpipe, or trachea, runs from the voice box down into the chest, where it divides into two main tubes, one for each lung. A cancer of the lung, the food pipe, the thyroid or nearby lymph nodes can grow into the airway or press on it from outside. As the opening narrows, breathlessness builds, breathing may become noisy, and a lung beyond the blockage can collapse or become infected.
What the stent does, and what it does not
The stent props the airway open so air can flow in and out. It is often used together with other steps, such as removing tumour from inside the airway first. It does not treat the cancer itself. It can relieve breathlessness and give time for radiotherapy, chemotherapy or other treatment to be planned.
Airway stents are placed by specialist teams. Ask your centre whether they do this, or where they would refer you.
!
Breathing trouble cannot wait
If someone with a narrowed airway or an airway stent becomes suddenly more breathless, has noisy or high-pitched breathing, turns blue or grey around the lips, coughs up more than streaks of blood, or cannot finish a sentence, call an ambulance or go to the nearest emergency department at once. Say that there is a tumour in the airway or an airway stent. Do not drive them yourself if they are struggling.
Not sure whether this applies to you?
Ask an oncologistThe choices
What kinds of airway stent are there?
The team chooses according to where the narrowing sits, whether it is pressing from outside or growing inside, and whether the stent may later need to come out.
Silicone stents
A firm rubbery tube. It can be moved or taken out later, which suits people whose tumour may shrink with treatment.
Things to know
- Needs a rigid camera tube under general anaesthesia
- Slightly more likely to slip or collect mucus
Metal mesh stents
A self-expanding mesh, often covered with a thin lining. It follows the shape of an irregular airway and can be placed with a flexible camera.
Things to know
- Harder to remove once settled in
- Mostly used when removal is not expected
Y-shaped stents
Used when the narrowing sits where the windpipe divides into the two main breathing tubes. One stent holds all three openings.
Stents that seal a leak
A covered stent in the airway, the food pipe, or both, can close an abnormal opening between them that causes coughing whenever the person drinks.
On the day
What happens when an airway stent is placed?
Scans and assessment
A CT scan maps the narrowing. A camera look into the airway, called a bronchoscopy, may already have been done. The anaesthetist checks your heart and breathing carefully.
Anaesthesia
Most airway stents are placed under general anaesthesia, with the anaesthetist and the airway specialist sharing the airway throughout. Some are placed under deep sedation.
Clearing and stenting
A camera tube goes in through the mouth. Tumour inside the airway may be removed or burnt away first. The stent is then placed across the narrowing and checked by camera.
Recovery
You wake in a recovery area with oxygen. A sore throat and cough are common. Some people go home the next day. Others stay longer, depending on how unwell they were beforehand.
Leave a number, we will call you
One field. No form to fill in, and no charge for the call.
On your report
What do the words on the bronchoscopy report mean?
- Trachea
- The windpipe, the main air tube running down into the chest.
- Main bronchus
- One of the two large breathing tubes that branch off the windpipe, one for each lung.
- Extrinsic compression
- The airway is being squeezed from outside, for example by a tumour or enlarged lymph nodes next to it.
- Endoluminal tumour
- Tumour growing inside the airway, into the space where air should flow.
- Rigid or flexible bronchoscopy
- A camera look into the airways, using either a straight metal tube under general anaesthesia or a thin bendable tube.
Commonly believed
What do families often believe about airway stents?
"Once the stent is in, the breathlessness will go away completely."
A stent relieves breathlessness caused by the narrowed airway. Breathlessness from fluid around the lung, lung disease, a low haemoglobin or the cancer elsewhere in the lung will not change. Ask the team which part they expect the stent to help.
"He will not be able to speak with a stent in his windpipe."
An airway stent sits below the voice box, so speaking is usually unaffected. A hoarse voice can come from the cancer itself or the camera tube, and the throat soreness after the procedure usually settles.
"Coughing means the stent is failing."
Some cough is common with a stent, because it tickles the airway lining. What needs attention is a cough bringing up thick mucus that will not clear, new blood, or breathlessness returning.
"Steam inhalation and home remedies can replace the nebuliser."
Moist air helps, but many teams prescribe saline nebulisers to keep mucus thin inside the stent. Use them as the team advises, and ask before adding any remedy.
Being straight with you
Who is an airway stent not suitable for, and what should you ask?
An airway stent helps only when a large airway is narrowed and the lung beyond it can still work. If the narrowing is in many small airways, or the lung beyond has been damaged for a long time, opening the main tube may bring little relief.
When the team may choose differently
If the tumour inside the airway can be removed or burnt away and is not pressing from outside, a stent may not be needed at all. Radiotherapy given from outside or placed inside the airway is sometimes used instead, or afterwards. For someone who is very frail, the team may discuss comfort measures such as oxygen and breathlessness medicines, and that discussion stays open and non-directive.
Questions worth asking
What is causing the narrowing? Which type of stent would you use, and can it be removed later? What care will it need at home? Who do we call if breathing gets worse at night? This page cannot tell you whether a stent suits you or how long it will help. Your team can, once they have seen the scans and the airway.
Questions we are asked
Common questions about airway stents
How quickly does breathing improve after an airway stent?
When the breathlessness is caused by the narrowed airway, many people notice easier breathing soon after they wake up. A sore throat and cough can make the first day uncomfortable. If the lung beyond the blockage had collapsed, it may take longer to re-open, and sometimes it does not.
Will I need a nebuliser at home?
Many teams prescribe saline nebulisers, because a stent cannot clear mucus the way the airway lining normally does, and dry sticky mucus can block it. Use it as advised. Drinking enough fluid and keeping the room air from becoming very dry also helps.
Can an airway stent be removed?
Silicone stents are designed so they can be removed or replaced, which helps if treatment shrinks the tumour. Metal stents are harder to remove once the airway lining has grown around them, and are usually meant to stay. Ask which type you have.
Can I have radiotherapy with an airway stent?
Often yes. Radiotherapy and chemotherapy may be given after the stent is placed, and sometimes that is the reason it was placed. Your oncology team plans treatment knowing the stent is there. As the tumour shrinks, the stent can loosen, so follow-up checks matter.
What problems can happen with an airway stent?
Mucus building up inside it, the stent slipping, tumour or scar tissue growing at its ends, infection and bad breath are the common ones. Bleeding is less common. Most can be managed with a repeat camera look. Tell your team early about any change in breathing.
Can I travel or fly with an airway stent?
Road travel is usually fine once you have recovered from the procedure. Flying depends on your oxygen levels and overall breathing, not only the stent. Ask your team before booking a flight, and carry your stent details and a letter explaining it.
Will the stent show up at airport security or in scans?
A metal stent rarely sets off airport detectors, and a silicone stent will not. Most airway stents are safe for CT scans. Before any MRI, show the scan centre your stent card or procedure note, so they can confirm the type is safe for that machine.
Is an airway stent covered by insurance or Aarogyasri?
It may be, when it is part of approved cancer treatment. Aarogyasri, CGHS, ECHS, EHS and many cashless insurance plans cover procedures of this kind, though rules on the stent itself vary. Call the helpline with your card or policy details and we will check your cover.
Meet the Specialists
17+ senior cancer specialists. One panel for your case.
Trained at AIIMS, Tata Memorial, and leading international centres. Combined 150+ years of experience. Every complex case is reviewed by 3+ of them — together.
Medical Oncologist
Dr. C. Raghavendra Reddy
MBBS(Gold Medal), DNB(General Medicine), DM(Medical Oncology)(Gold Medal)
Medical Oncologist
Dr. Bharati Devi Gorantla
MBBS, MD(General Medicine), DM(Medical Oncology)(Adyar,Chennai), ECMO, MRCP SCE(UK)
Medical Oncologist
Dr. Owais Mohammed
MBBS, MD (General Medicine), DrNB (Medical Oncology), ECMO, MRCP SCE (Medical Oncology) (UK)
Medical Oncologist
Medical Oncologist
Surgical Oncologist
Dr. Muralidhar Muddusetty
MBBS (AIIMS), MS (Surgery) (AIIMS), DNB (Surgical Oncology), MRCS (Edinburgh)
Surgical Oncologist
Surgical Oncologist
Surgical Oncologist
Dr. Vinay Mamidala
MBBS, MS(General Surgery), M.Ch(Surgical Oncology), FMAS, FARIS(Ongoing)
Surgical Oncologist
Radiation Oncologist
Radiation Oncologist
Radiation Oncologist
Hematologist
Surgical Oncologist
Dr. Vajja Sandeep Kumar
MBBS, MS (General Surgery), DrNB (Surgical Oncology), FALS Oncology
Surgical Oncologist
Want a specific doctor for your case? Mention them when booking.
Book Free ConsultationBook an appointment with our specialist
Share your name and number — we'll call you back within 30 minutes to schedule your consultation.
Sources
- Cancer Research UK — Lung cancer treatment
- Macmillan Cancer Support — Breathlessness
- American Cancer Society — Treating non-small cell lung cancer
- National Cancer Institute — Definition of stent
This page is general information, not a prescription. Do not change or stop any treatment based on what you read here. If anything is worrying you, contact your own treating team — or call our helpline and we will help you reach the right specialist.
Keep reading
Related pages
Talk to us
Told the airway is narrowed?
If breathing is getting worse fast, go to an emergency department first. Otherwise, tell us what the scans show and we will help you reach the right specialist. One helpline serves every CION centre.