Pain Hustlers

In Pain Hustlers, Evan Hughes uncovers the true story behind Insys Therapeutics, a pharmaceutical startup that made millions by aggressively marketing a potent fentanyl-based painkiller. The book details how the company, founded by entrepreneur John Kapoor, developed a drug originally approved for severe cancer pain and then pushed its sales far beyond its intended use. Hughes reveals the tactics employed by an ambitious sales team, including bribing doctors and deceiving insurance companies, to expand the drug's reach and boost profits.

This investigative account lays bare the playbook of a company that prioritized financial gain over patient safety, contributing to the broader opioid crisis. It chronicles the rise of Insys from a niche pharmaceutical venture to a Wall Street sensation, and the eventual unraveling of its scheme, leading to a landmark criminal trial. The narrative offers a direct look at the human impact of corporate greed within the pharmaceutical industry and the mechanisms through which highly addictive drugs entered the national bloodstream.