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What’s in a name? Apparently, quite a lot: drug companies pay $200,000 to $500,000 to have a drug name ‘designed’ so the drug will sell, will communicate something about what the drug is used for, and will not be easily confused for another drug at the pharmacy. Frankly, reading the article that detailed this process - drug company marketing execs and consultants sitting in an office having a powwow about how they can get a few more million people taking drugs – turned my stomach. Strong words, I know, but we already have 22 million Americans who need alcohol or drug detox and rehab. Do we really need more?

Some of the drugs are for cancer, some are for infections – legitimate medical conditions. But others are addictive drugs as dangerous and addictive as heroin and cocaine. What problems do they solve? None, really. They simply hide them from view.

Nevertheless, the marketing continues: “A lot of it is more art than science,” said William Trombetta, professor of pharmaceutical marketing at St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia. “There are certain letters that express power and control, like Z, M or P. Other letters, like S, are more passive. Depending on what the drug does, you want to give the name certain features.”

The article continues: “Want to sound high-tech? Go for lots of Z’s and X’s, such as Xanax, Xalatan, Zyban and Zostrix. Want to sound poetic? Try Lyrica, Truvada and Femara.”

Prescription drug addiction is almost as big a problem as addiction to street drugs. I guess as long as there are occupations like “professor of pharmaceutical marketing’, we can’t expect anything less.

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