Roxana S. Dronca MD

Roxana S. Dronca, MD, is a consultant and chair of the Division of Hematology/ Oncology in the Department of Internal Medicine at Mayo Clinic in Florida. Dr. Dronca serves as director, Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center, Florida Cancer Programs, and she also serves as a member of the Florida Executive Operations Team. Dr. Dronca joined the staff of Mayo Clinic in 2012 and holds the academic rank of professor of oncology, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science.

Dr. Dronca earned her MD at Iuliu Hatieganu University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, where she also completed a transitional residency. She subsequently completed a residency in internal medicine at William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Michigan, serving as chief resident. She completed a hematology/ oncology fellowship at Mayo Clinic School of Graduate Medical Education and continued her training as a Mayo Clinic Scholar at Mayo Clinic Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences.

Dr. Dronca’s research interests are in the field of tumor immunology, with a particular interest in malignant melanoma and genitourinary malignancies. Her goal is to understand the interaction of immune and endocrine systems in modulating the anti-tumor immune response, study the dynamics and mechanisms of systemic immune regulation in cancer, and develop innovative approaches to cancer therapy utilizing chemotherapy and immunotherapy agents administered in an individualized fashion.

Dr. Dronca has received federal funding in support of her research for identifying biomarkers of response to novel immune checkpoint inhibitors, in collaboration with Dr. Haidong Dong. Additionally, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Dronca has become involved with the Mayo Clinic Florida and the Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center effort to envision and set up the Mayo Clinic Cancer CARE Beyond Walls program which strives to create a new model of cancer care that integrates telehealth and digital technologies with traditional models of cancer therapy. The goal is to continue to provide high-quality cancer care that is responsive to the diversity of our communities and patient mix, inclusive of people from all racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds and be committed to address patient access into our facilities and mitigate health disparities. For this work Dr. Dronca has received Department of Defense as well as private Foundation funding.

She has given presentations on her research to both national and international audiences and has authored many journal articles, abstracts and other written publications. She serves on the editorial board for Elsevier Practice Update, and she holds reviewer responsibilities for prominent scientific publications.

Throughout her career, Dr. Dronca has received many awards and honors, including the Hemostasis and Thrombosis Research Society Award. At Mayo Clinic she has received the KL2 Mentored Career Development Award and the Outrun the Sun Foundation Research Scholar Award, as well as the Excellence in Teaching Award from Mayo Clinic School of Graduate Medical Education.

Dr. Dronca is active in education and has provided mentorship to multiple residents, fellows and faculty, among others. She holds master's faculty privileges in Clinical and Translational Science at Mayo Clinic Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences.

Dr. Dronca is a member of the Alliance for Clinical Trials in Cancer and serves on the Alliance Immuno-Oncology Advisory Committee. She is also active in the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer, and the Society of Urologic Oncology, where she is a member of the Clinical Trials Consortium. She has also served as a scientist reviewer and panel chair for the Department of Defense Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program.