JACKSONVILLE, Fl. — Erin Mobley, PhD, MPH, a UF College of Medicine – Jacksonville assistant professor, has been named a 2025 Special Merit Award recipient by Conquer Cancer, the American Society of Clinical Oncology, or ASCO, foundation.
Mobley, who is dedicated to advancing cancer survivorship research, received the James B. Nachman Endowed ASCO Junior Faculty Award in Pediatric Oncology for her abstract entitled, Longitudinal change in cardiac function after doxorubicin and dexrazoxane: A report from COG ALTE11C2. She was provided the opportunity to work on this study through a young investigator award from the Children’s Oncology Group, or COG, which matched her with the investigative team, including the senior author and her mentor on the project, Eric Chow, MD, MPH, of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center.
“I am truly honored to receive this award and present our research findings at this year’s ASCO Annual Meeting,” Mobley said. “Dr. Nachman’s legacy of excellence in pediatric cancer and survivorship has made a lasting impact on the field. By conducting patient-centered research like this, we build on his contributions and make positive strides to improve the health of cancer patients and survivors worldwide.”
According to the National Institutes of Health, dexrazoxane is in a class of medications known as cardio protectants. It is commonly prescribed to patients undergoing cancer treatment or taking cancer-fighting drugs like doxorubicin, as some drugs can negatively impact cardiac function. The goal of this study was to evaluate whether pediatric patients would have a reduced risk of cardiac complications with doxorubicin (cancer-fighting) and dexrazoxane (cardio-protectant) being used simultaneously.
Using data from multiple studies conducted by the Children’s Oncology Group, Mobley and the investigative team analyzed data, randomly selecting patients to receive dexrazoxane or not, allowing for a comparison of cardiac outcomes. The study was done among childhood cancer survivors, who were an average of 11 years of age at diagnosis, and completed treatment 15 to 20 years prior with chemotherapy regimens containing doxorubicin.
“When undergoing chemotherapy, there is a possibility of damage to the heart's function and structure in both short- and long-term,” Mobley said. “While dexrazoxane was approved for women being treated for breast cancer with doxorubicin in the mid-1990s, its impacts among pediatric survivors has not been widely studied. Looking at nearly 900 patients, our team measured how childhood cancer survivors’ echocardiograms changed over time. This allowed us to monitor how the structure and function of the heart changes for those that received the cardio-protective drug in comparison to those who did not.”
They found that dexrazoxane protected cardiac function and structure, particularly among those who received higher doses of chemotherapy. She is excited about what this discovery means for all cancer patients, but particularly young survivors.
“This could be investigated among other pediatric survivors receiving other chemotherapy drugs that are cardiotoxic, as well as in adolescents and young adults, as we know that long-term survivors are at risk for cardiovascular side effects as they age,” Mobley said. “It’s important to share these findings not only across oncology specialties, but across all specialties that could be caring for cancer survivors. This is what makes research at the UF College of Medicine – Jacksonville stand out because we are thinking about how this impacts the patient not only while they’re undergoing treatment, but when they are finished with treatment and what type of impact that will have long-term.”
About The Children’s Oncology Group
The Children’s Oncology Group, a member of the NCI National Clinical Trials Network, or NCTN, is the world’s largest organization devoted exclusively to childhood and adolescent cancer research. The Children’s Oncology Group unites over 10,000 experts in childhood cancer at more than 200 leading children’s hospitals, universities and cancer centers across North America, Australia, New Zealand and Saudi Arabia in the fight against childhood cancer. Today, more than 80% of the 15,000 children and adolescents diagnosed with cancer each year in the United States are cared for at Children’s Oncology Group member institutions. Research performed by Children’s Oncology Group institutions over the past 50 years has transformed childhood cancer from a virtually incurable disease to one with a combined 5-year survival rate of 86%. The Children’s Oncology Group’s mission is to improve the cure rate and outcomes for all children with cancer.
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