And why it’s now a core business function, not a “nice to have”

Medical misinformation is no longer a fringe issue — it’s one of the most powerful forces shaping patient behavior, brand trust, and commercial outcomes. During and after COVID-19, false claims moved markets, derailed treatment decisions, and triggered real patient harm. Today, more than half of adults turn to social platforms for health information, meaning misinformation travels faster and farther than ever.

For pharma leaders, ignoring it is a strategic risk. Monitoring it is a strategic advantage.

1. Protecting patients is protecting the brand

False claims about therapies, side effects, or alternative “cures” have direct clinical consequences: delayed diagnosis, treatment abandonment, unsafe self-medication. When misinformation harms patients, it inevitably harms the companies connected to those products. Monitoring gives early warning before a small narrative becomes a patient-safety issue or media crisis.

2. Reputation now shifts at the speed of AI

Trust in pharma surged early in the pandemic, then dropped sharply as waves of misinformation filled the information vacuum. Brands that fail to counter false narratives get framed by them. Monitoring helps you detect attacks, distortions, and viral myths early — before they influence prescribers, patients, regulators, or investors.

3. Commercial performance is directly affected

A single viral claim can reduce uptake at launch, undermine disease-education campaigns, or force expensive corrective media. Monitoring helps teams respond before misinformation dents awareness, intention, and demand — and protects the ROI of digital and marketing investments.

4. Regulators and public health bodies expect it

The WHO now treats misinformation management as part of public-health protection. Regulators increasingly expect pharma to act responsibly when harmful narratives circulate around products, safety signals, or disease areas. You can’t act responsibly if you’re not listening.

5. It’s an opportunity — not just a defense

Companies that monitor effectively can step in with credible, medically validated explanations, partner with clinicians and advocates, and become a trusted source of clarity. The winners won’t be the ones who react fastest, but the ones who engage most transparently.

At Petridish.ai, we’re taking a step to fix this problem by giving pharma teams the intelligence, alerts, and tools they need to detect and respond to medical misinformation before it harms patients or your brand.

If you want to see how misinformation monitoring can work inside your organisation, get in touch — we combine agentic AI with experienced healthcare professionals to deliver fast, accurate, and clinically reliable insights.