SUMMARY
Rijul S. Kshirsagar, M.D., is a rhinologist and skull base surgeon at Mayo Clinic. His research focuses on improving outcomes for patients with complex sinonasal and anterior skull base disease, with particular emphasis on rare malignancies. He examines how clinical factors, treatment decisions and reconstructive techniques affect tumor control, surgical complications and long-term recovery.
Dr. Kshirsagar conducts multi-institutional outcomes studies, large database analyses and collaborative rare tumor cohort studies. These studies help identify prognostic factors, characterize recurrence patterns and evaluate emerging therapies, including immunotherapy for sinonasal mucosal melanoma. He also investigates how perioperative risk factors, such as frailty, impact surgical outcomes and postoperative quality of life. This work supports better patient selection, shared decision-making and evidence-based advances in endoscopic skull base surgery.
Focus areas
- Sinonasal cancer outcomes. Dr. Kshirsagar conducts outcomes research on prognosis, recurrence and treatment response in rare sinonasal and skull base malignancies. Through multi-institutional cohort studies, he determines clinical predictors and evaluates how surgery, radiation and systemic therapies influence long-term disease control.
- Immunotherapy in mucosal melanoma. Dr. Kshirsagar performs collaborative research on real-world outcomes of immunotherapy for sinonasal mucosal melanoma, including patterns of treatment failure. These efforts identify factors that may guide treatment sequencing and inform future clinical trials for uncommon tumors.
- Frailty and surgical risk. Dr. Kshirsagar investigates how frailty and comorbidity profiles affect complications, length of stay and recovery after extended endonasal skull base procedures. He incorporates validated risk indices to improve perioperative counseling, risk stratification and management strategies.
- Skull base reconstruction optimization. Dr. Kshirsagar explores reconstructive methods and graft materials aimed at reducing cerebrospinal fluid leaks, infection and other postoperative complications. This work highlights technical factors that improve reconstruction success and support safer recovery after endoscopic skull base surgery.
Significance to patient care
Patients with rare tumors in the nose and skull base often face uncertain treatment plans. They also may have a higher risk of complications after surgery. Dr. Kshirsagar's research helps doctors better understand which treatments are most likely to work for different patients, including newer immune-based therapies. He also studies ways to reduce complications — such as cerebrospinal fluid leaks — after skull base surgery. His work helps make surgery safer by improving how doctors assess risks before surgery and plan for care afterward. These advances may lead to fewer complications, better long-term cancer control and a better quality of life after treatment.