A painkilling drug, Vioxx, received FDA approval in May 1999, after its developer, Merck, had presented the results of eight studies that tested the drug on 5,400 subjects. Five years later, in September 2004, Merck withdrew Vioxx, after its cardiac toxicities were found to have caused an estimated up to 139,000 heart attacks and killed 38,000 in the US. In the interim, as revealed in Merck internal documents disclosed in court filings, Merck had prepared a spreadsheet listing individual doctors and scientists who had reported the toxic effects of Vioxx and assigned task forces to “discredit” or “neutralize” them. One Merck executive emailed another, “we may need to seek them out and destroy them where they live.” Merck also distributed a PowerPoint presentation entitled “Dodge Ball Vioxx” to its drug sales representatives, with instructions for dodging awkward inquiries from physicians. To the question, “I am concerned about the cardiovascular effects of Vioxx?” the answer that Merck instructed was: “DODGE!”