Yes, you can if you like. If you do go for fresh cherries instead, you might find you need to add some extra cherry extract to get the same rich flavour, as well as a little more sugar perhaps. Just taste the dough before baking and see what you think. Another option would be subbing another kind of fruit for the cherries, such as strawberries for example, and then adding strawberry extract. If you’re making this kind of tweak, just taste as you go to achieve a good flavour balance.