Self-expanding metal endoprosthesis is a safe and effective palliative treatment for relieving esophageal cancer obstruction, which can improve patients’ survival quality and prolong survival time. Patients with advanced esophageal cancer and cardia cancer are unable to eat due to luminal stenosis as a result of losing the opportunity of surgery, which seriously affects the survival quality and life of patients. The placement of metal stents is a fast, effective and safe palliative treatment for esophageal cancer obstruction, which can immediately relieve swallowing difficulties, improve nutrition and correct water-electrolyte disorders, improve survival quality, and create conditions for further chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Gastroscopic stent placement under direct vision is easy to perform, has a short operation time, and avoids radiation exposure. Titanium-nickel memory alloy stent has unique shape memory characteristics, better compliance and less damage to esophagus, while the stent with membrane can keep the stenosis open for a longer period of time and prevent the inward growth of cancerous tissue, has good histocompatibility and corrosion resistance and unique anti-reflux settings, and does not produce scattering effect on radiotherapy. The common complications after stenting are chest pain, pharyngeal discomfort and foreign body sensation, and the symptoms are usually gradually reduced in about a week. Gastric and esophageal reflux and stent displacement or blockage may also occur.