After getting her break as Rosa Santos on the daytime drama All My Children (1970), Alana moved to Los Angeles, a slew of guest spots followed. One of the most recognizable was her role as a con artist on the hit show Las Vegas (2003), followed by a series lead on the WB's The Mountain (2004). She starred in the romantic comedy Mr. Fix It (2006) opposite David Boreanaz and appeared on several episodes of CSI: Miami (2002).
She joined the cast of Law & Order (1990) in June 2006 for several seasons and the moved to Law & Order: LA. She went on to star in the TV series Do No Harm (2013), Forever (2014), and Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders (2016).
In 2019, she landed a major role on the TV series FBI and has appeared in several crossover episodes of its' spinoff series FBI: Most Wanted and FBI: International.
She also narrated the true-crime series The FBI: Declassified (2020).