Mary Bauman joined the team at Amylin Pharmaceuticals six months ago and moved to San Diego from the Bay Area, where she had worked for Bayer for 17 years.

EDUARDO CONTRERAS / Union-Tribune Mary Bauman's job as vice president of product commercialization at Amylin Pharmaceuticals involves marketing new drugs.

She says she calls on her background as a registered dietitian and a marketing and sales rep for Bayer in her new position as vice president of new-product commercialization.

The job involves introducing and marketing new drug products to both the public and the medical community. Amylin, one of San Diego's largest biotech companies, has two diabetes drugs on the market and had almost $800 million in revenue last year.

Bauman started out in Boston as a registered dietitian in private practice, working with patients to reduce their cholesterol and blood sugar with the right foods. She also worked in a clinical environment, studying the drop in estrogen and bone density in female athletes.

She moved to Bayer as a sales rep to “do something more” for patients. From sales, Bauman became involved in medical affairs, working with physicians to educate them on drugs and to develop marketing studies.

Having worked with patients and physicians, Bauman feels her goal is to “make more of an impact on more people.”

Mary Bauman Position: Vice president of new product commercialization Company: Amylin Pharmaceuticals Age: 48 Career highlights: Bayer, sales and marketing; registered dietitian at New England Deaconess Hospital in Boston Education: Bachelor of arts in nutrition, University of Vermont

She cites an example of working on a product for hemophilia, a rare disorder that prevents blood from clotting. The afflicted lack something called Factor 8 and must intravenously replace this substance in their blood for life. These patients must self-infuse Factor 8 into their bloodstream up to three times a week.

Bauman thought it would improve the quality of life for hemophiliacs if they could reduce the number of times they had to self-infuse. She thought there might be a way to increase the amount of time Factor 8 could stay in the bloodstream.

Working with scientists and the research and development team on this idea, Bayer came up with an alternative injection that patients would have to use only once a week. The product is going through FDA trials now.

Bauman said biotech offers a lot of opportunities for people in various backgrounds.

“Anybody can get involved as long as they have a passion for it,” she said. “It's all about doing what you love.”