Many fields of endeavor have their own special words, abbreviations, and coded language. People working in each of these disciplines learn over time how to use certain phrases that describe items or situations in the best possible light. In real estate listings, for example, a house will never be designated as “small.” Instead, it might be referred to as “adorable” or “cozy.” “Conveniently located” would be a nicer way of saying that a house is next to a busy highway. The phrase “a great opportunity” is usually translated as “the house needs a lot of work.”
You may be at a loss to figure out the truth behind the meaning of these phrases if you don’t happen to work in that particular area. Biopharmaceuticals, like real estate, has its own set of catch phrases that likely need translation for the layperson. With that in mind, I’d like to share some examples to help those of you who are new to this field to understand what is truly meant or is being hidden. As the author James Baldwin once said, “The price one pays for pursuing any profession, or calling, is an immediate knowledge of its ugly side.”
With that in mind, here are some translations of phrases you often hear in the biopharmaceutical business:
“All forward-looking statements are based on the companies’ current assumptions and expectations and involve risks, uncertainties and other important factors” simply means “please don’t sue us when our drug fails in the clinic.”
“We don’t permit our reps to sell drugs via off-label promotion” is the denial frequently heard in response to a federal indictment. This phrase used to mean “dang, we got nailed!” After a more detailed legal analysis, however, it has been re-translated as “off-label drug promotion is free speech and shall not be infringed.”
“Our drugs are made in the most modern, up-to-date facilities” is often uttered in response to accusations of serious manufacturing problems. It can often be translated as “if this was public housing, people would accuse us of being slumlords.”
If a drug sales rep says “I’m not wearing a wire” at a company-training seminar, this actually means that he or she is recording the session for their whistleblower lawsuit.
The phrase “we were forced to raise drug prices due to increased costs” is a classic example of obfuscation. It really means “we hope nobody noticed that our price increase was seven times the rate of inflation.”
“These marketing problems were all in the past” can be correctly translated as “it’ll be much harder to catch us in the future.”
If a company spokesperson says “the FDA is just playing politics” or “they didn’t really understand our data” following the unanimous rejection of a drug application, he or she
