A case of bronchial obstruction by metastatic renal cell carcinoma

A 68-year-old Chinese male with a history of renal cell carcinoma presenting with increasing shortness of breath and hemoptysis was found to have subtotal left main bronchial obstruction secondary to a metastatic endobronchial tumor. The mass was completely resected through a rigid ventilating bronchoscope, and a silicone stent was placed over the tumor bed in the left main bronchus. He remained asymptomatic with no evidence of bronchoscopic recurrence 4 months after the procedure. Obstructive endobronchial metastases from nonpulmonary primaries are rare. Endoluminal resection with stent placement can provide good palliation in this group of patients with limited survival.