Cari Gallman ’03 Leads in Legal and Policy Innovation in Medicine

For a long time, Cari Gallman ’03 wanted to be a doctor. When she was 8 years old, her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer and became disabled from her surgeries and treatments. Witnessing her mother’s diagnosis inspired Gallman to help other people experiencing serious illnesses receive the proper medicine and care.

“I understood, from a very early age, the power of medicine and health care. It’s always directed me. I want to make sure I can help people who need that help,” she says.

At Princeton she pursued a pre-med track, determined to cure cancer. Things changed, however, after an unexpected event: Her goldfish died.

“I was too squeamish to flush the fish. And my roommate … was so frustrated that she went and she dumped the fish … on the lawn in front of Witherspoon, and then came back in so mad with me and said, ‘Maybe you should rethink being a doctor.’ And she was right,” Gallman says.

That moment led her to reconsider her path — she still focused on health care but through law and policy instead of medicine. After Princeton, she went on to law school at Harvard.

While working at a law firm with pharmaceutical clients, Gallman met with two lawyers who worked for Bristol Myers Squibb, a leader in immuno-oncology. They showed her data on OPDIVO, a then-unlaunched cancer drug proving to help patients survive beyond expectations. Blown away, she immediately asked to join BMS: “I literally jumped up at that lunch, and instead of recruiting them to the firm … I just said, ‘I have to be part of this,’” she says.

Gallman has now worked for BMS for 10 years. Recently, she became the new executive vice president, general counsel, and chief policy officer. She manages the legal and policy teams, overseeing strategy for laws and regulations. She focuses on helping the company maintain ethical practices, come up with innovative medicine, and protect patients.

Gallman is especially proud of helping launch COBENFY, a new schizophrenia drug that has the largest medical breakthrough for schizophrenia patients in many years. “Seeing what the impact of that medicine on people’s lives is, and the fact that we’re able to help people get access to it earlier and sooner, has been incredibly meaningful,” she says.

Gallman speaks highly of her time at Princeton, which she says shaped her both intellectually and personally. Her last two years were especially impactful. After her sophomore year ended, she took time off to care for her mother, and she returned with a greater appreciation.

She calls herself “a fairly enthusiastic Princeton fan. I have a little tiger sitting on my desk and everyone who walks by who asks about it has to hear me say ‘Go Tigers,’” she says.

Explaining that each pivot and every mistake brought her to where she is now, Gallman offers advice to her younger self and to young professionals, particularly women of color: “Dream big. Don’t be your own limiting factor. Find mentors who you’re comfortable with, find mentors who look like you, and find mentors who don’t look like you.”

And: “Be pretty clear with people about what you want, and talk to them and ask them for help.”