Dr. Santangelo graduated summa cum laude from Villanova University in 1981 with a Bachelor of Civil Engineering degree. In 1985, she received an M.D. degree from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, graduating in the top one-fifth of her class, and went on to receive clinical training in the field of general surgery. She is licensed to practice medicine in Pennsylvania.

Following a job at The Beasley Firm as a law student beginning in 1991, Dr. Santangelo joined the firm as an attorney in 1992. She concentrates her practice in the areas of medical malpractice and other complex litigation.

She has obtained substantial recoveries, including numerous multimillion dollar recoveries, on behalf of clients seriously injured or killed as a result of medical malpractice and other negligence.

She is a member of the bars of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and the U.S. Supreme Court.

Dr. Santangelo was awarded the Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association's James J. Manderino Award for Excellency in Trial Advocacy. She has served on the Board of Directors of the Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association and sits as an Arbitrator in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas.

She is a Fellow of the American College of Legal Medicine and has participated in professional educational seminars to lawyers and doctors concerning medical malpractice.

Dr. Santangelo is a member of trial lawyer professional organizations at the local, state, and national level, and she also is a longstanding member of the Philadelphia County Medical Society and Pennsylvania Medical Society.