Palliative endoscopic treatment of the upper gastro-intestinal (UGI) tract includes: dilation, Nd:YAG laser photocoagulation and intubation, used alone or in combination. These procedures are usually performed on an outpatient basis and are associated with a low rate of morbidity and mortality. From 1978 to 1992, 836 patients were treated at the Endoscopy Division of the Istituto Nazionale Tumori, Milan, for inoperable primary or recurrent malignancies of the UGI-tract. Recanalization was obtained in 96% of patients treated; functional results have been computed according to the site and to the endoscopic method. Overall median survival was 6.2 months. The complication rate was 8%. Relief of dysphagia is the goal of palliative treatment in patients with inoperable neoplasms of the UGI-tract.