How we adapted five different English oncology campaign concepts into French, preserving the visual-conceptual intent of each without defaulting to literal translation.
The client
A pharmaceutical manufacturer bringing a first-line combination therapy to the French oncology market. The product targets EGFR and MET pathways in metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer, and the HCP campaign concepts were in development for market research testing, with French oncologists and pulmonologists as the target audience.
The challenge
Campaign concepts for a first-line oncology combination therapy have a creative logic to them that translation alone can’t do justice to. In this case, each of the five concepts used a different approach.
One anchored the product’s efficacy in the metaphor of forward motion tied to progression-free survival data. Another used the image of a cage trapping a tumor to convey the concept of multi-targeted suppression. A third played on “power” to reference both the science of dual inhibition and the combined strength of two agents working together. None of these could be transferred literally into French.
A strategy sheet accompanying the brief made the creative intent for each concept clear, including which words carried visual or metaphorical weight, where French would need to find an equivalent rather than a translation, and where prior markets had come up against linguistic issues. That level of briefing raised the bar for what a correct French adaptation would need to do.
Regulatory issues were another constraint. Campaign concepts intended for market research in France fall under ANSM promotional guidelines and EU Directive 2001/83/EC. As some English-language efficacy metaphors read more forcefully in French than intended, they had to be rebalanced without sacrificing the creative concept.
The solution
We worked using the strategy sheet as the primary reference rather than just using the English source text. For each concept, before a single word was written, the French adaptation began with a review of the creative intent, the visuals, the metaphor and the tone. In cases where English wordplay relied on associations that had no direct French equivalent, the adaptation found the nearest parallel creative path.
The regulatory framing was assessed for each concept before delivery. Where French phrasing of an efficacy claim would have overstated the meaning of the English source under ANSM guidelines, the formulation was adjusted, and the decision was documented alongside the delivered text.
The brief also noted explicitly that there was no prior linguistic data from other markets, no precedent for which English concepts had previously failed or succeeded with French-speaking oncologists. The decisions made about adaptations had to hold fast without that safety net.
The results
- Five oncology HCP campaign concepts adapted into French, each preserving its distinct visual-conceptual logic (forward motion, dual inhibition, multi-targeted suppression, combined strength), without literal translation of the source.
- Strategy sheet used as primary briefing reference throughout; adaptation decisions documented for each concept, with rationale for every creative departure from the English source.
- Regulatory framing reviewed against ANSM promotional guidelines and EU Directive 2001/83/EC Article 86–100 before delivery; efficacy claims rebalanced where French phrasing would have overstated the meaning of the source.
