Phyllis Irene Gardner, MD, a professor of medicine and former senior associate dean for medical education at Stanford Medicine, died suddenly while on vacation on Martha’s Vineyard on Sept. 10. She was 75.
“Phyllis was an outstanding physician-scientist and a fearless advocate for integrity in science,” said Lloyd Minor, MD, dean of the Stanford School of Medicine and vice president for medical affairs at Stanford University. “Her intellect, energy and larger-than-life spirit left an enduring mark on Stanford Medicine and on everyone who had the privilege of working with her.”
Throughout her career in internal medicine, clinical pharmacology and drug development, Gardner’s intellectual rigor, integrity and commitment to preparing the next generation of physicians and scientists to innovate responsibly were unwavering, her colleagues said.
“Integrity ran through everything she did,” said her husband, Andrew Perlman, MD, PhD. “She couldn’t abide dishonesty in science or in people.”
At Stanford Medicine, Gardner led efforts to modernize the medical school curriculum, championing closer collaboration between the MD and PhD programs and creating space for innovation at the intersection of medicine, science and industry.
During the 1990s, she treated cardiology patients and led pioneering research that deepened the understanding of cystic fibrosis. “She cared tremendously about her patients — if she thought something wasn’t done to the highest level, she let you know,” said Neil Gesundheit, MD, the George DeForest Barnett Professor III in Medicine. “That was the principle that guided the way she mentored younger people in clinical medicine.”
As senior associate dean for student affairs, she was known for her creative energy and relentless advocacy for students, Gesundheit said, adding that she championed women and racial minorities in medicine.
“She was generous with her time and mentoring and lifted up so many people who were lucky enough to cross her path,” said Jane Parnes, MD, emerita professor of medicine. “She was passionate about doing what was right for her students and unafraid to challenge the system when it wasn’t.”
“Phyllis was always a very engaging, outgoing person. She was very friendly, very outspoken, and just sort of a bigger-than-life personality,” said Andrew Hoffman, MD, an emeritus professor of endocrinology. “You could count on her to have an interesting conversation — she had no qualms about telling people what she thought.”
Her outspoken presence, sharp intellect and quick wit animated every room she entered, her husband said. “She was the center of everything — our family, our friends, our life together. She brought warmth and humor to every part of it,” Perlman said. “She was extroverted and deeply feeling. She drew energy from connecting with people and listening to them.”
A career spanning industry and academia
Phyllis Gardner was born July 7, 1950, in Ames, Iowa, where her father, Franklin Gardner, was completing his PhD in agronomy. Her mother, Opal Gardner, was a homemaker. Phyllis grew up with two siblings, Donald and Colleen, to whom she remained close throughout her life.
A gifted student, Gardner earned her bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of Illinois in 1972, where her father served as dean. She received a medical degree from Harvard Medical School in 1976.
Gardner first met Perlman during her internal medicine residency at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, while he was visiting Hoffman. “I was working with her in the intensive care unit, and Andy came by to visit me — so I get credit for introducing them,” Hoffman said.
Their paths crossed again the following year at Stanford Medicine, where Perlman was chief resident and Gardner was completing a third year of internal medicine residency. The two formed a lasting friendship that grew into a partnership. Gardner joined Perlman in New York, where she had a fellowship in pharmacology at Columbia University, studying cardiac arrythmias and cell physiology. The two then moved to London, where she was a pharmacology fellow at University College London. There she studied the proteins that send and receive electrical signals, called ion channels, and learned methods that defined her Stanford Medicine research career. The two married on July 26, 1984, in London.
Phyllis was always a very engaging, outgoing person. She was very friendly, very outspoken, and just sort of a bigger-than-life personality.”
— Andrew Hoffman
Gardner and Perlman returned to Stanford in 1984, she as an assistant professor of medicine and of pharmacology. They made their home on the Stanford campus. The couple had two children, Nicola Claire Perlman in 1987 and Jay Gardner Perlman in 1989.
Gardner built her research lab. It’s where she became the first to discover that an ion channel gene that causes cystic fibrosis, CFTR, is present and functional in immune cells, leading to a better understanding of how the disease affects the immune system.
“Our collaboration led to a decade-long effort to cure cystic fibrosis,” said Richard Moss, MD, emeritus professor of pediatrics who worked on the project with Gardner. “That research laid the groundwork for a new generation of gene therapy programs for cystic fibrosis.”
At Stanford Medicine, she combined her work in cardiology with her expertise in clinical pharmacology, treating complex cardiac cases and helping manage transplant patients, where her knowledge of immune rejection and drug mechanisms was especially valuable. She saw patients at the cardiology clinics until the mid-1990s, when she shifted her focus toward industry.
In 1994, Gardner took a sabbatical to join ALZA Corporation as vice president of research, applying her pharmacology expertise to the development of novel drug-delivery systems.
Returning to Stanford Medicine in 1998, she was appointed senior associate dean for education and student affairs, where she spearheaded significant reforms in medical education. Her vision drove a complete overhaul of the medical school curriculum into an organ system-based approach that integrated basic science and clinical training, a legacy that endures today.
During her deanship, Gardner built a strong leadership team that shaped medical education at Stanford for decades. She recruited Gesundheit, who served in the dean’s office for 26 years, as well as Gabriel Garcia, MD, professor of gastroenterology and hepatology, who became associate dean of admissions for nearly 20 years. She also appointed Charlene Hamada and Martha Trujillo — both of whom served for decades.
Gardner also shifted her focus to teaching and mentoring. She particularly enjoyed engaging with students interested in entrepreneurship, medicine and innovation, leaving a lasting impact on their careers, Parnes said.
When her associate deanship ended in 2001, Gardner expanded her work in biotechnology. Until 2015, she was a partner at Essex Woodlands Health Ventures, advising on investments in biomedical innovation and mentoring women in science and business. She frequently spoke about the challenges women faced in venture capital. In a Stanford Medicine Alumni Association presentation, she called it “the hardest place for women to succeed — harder than academia or industry.”
She later joined several corporate boards, including Revance Therapeutics, Ventaira Pharmaceuticals and MiMedx Group Inc., and she founded or co-founded multiple companies, including Genomics Collaborative, SKOLAR and CambriaTech Holding Co.
Devotion to family
Outside of her professional achievements, Gardner was known for her warmth, generosity and deep devotion to her family and community.
“We were very successful in juggling intensive careers and bringing up children,” Perlman said. “Phyllis never pushed the kids — she just had faith they’d do fine. That gave them strength and confidence. She was also a wonderful grandmother, spending hours playing silly games with the grandkids.”
Gardner valued curiosity and creativity outside of work. She loved art, travel and exercise, and found joy in continual learning.
“When she was younger, she was an avid runner and loved staying fit,” Perlman said. “After a fracture ended her running, she took up swimming and kept at it for years. She loved her dogs and crossword puzzles, and we took family trips to a ranch in Montana and to our place on Martha’s Vineyard.”
Gardner and Perlman shared a strong sense of purpose and philanthropy, supporting higher education, medical research and anti-hunger initiatives. “We see philanthropy as a duty and a privilege,” Perlman said.
“She cared deeply about people — it was entirely genuine,” Parnes said. “If you needed help, Phyllis was there.”
To her family, she was a source of love, humor and inspiration. “She was a superstar in life and career,” Perlman said, and “a singular, loving person we will never forget.”
Gardner received numerous national awards. She was honored as a Burroughs Wellcome Faculty Scholar in Clinical Pharmacology for her pioneering studies in ion channel biophysiology and cystic fibrosis. She received a Faculty Development Award from the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association Foundation, supporting her early pharmacologic research. Gardner was a member of the Harvard Medical School Board of Fellows and Advisory Council on Education.
Gardner is survived by her husband, Perlman, of Stanford, California; her daughter, Nicola Claire Perlman, MD, of Burlingame, California; and her son, Jay Gardner Perlman, of Gandía, Spain. She is also survived by her siblings and four grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her parents.
