From the outside looking in, the pharmaceutical industry appears to be in the midst of dark days.

Last year, the industry fell over a “patent cliff” in which several blockbuster drugs saw their sales exclusivity end. This year, others began to face generic competition for the first time. It's estimated that the industry could lose as much as $267 billion between 2011 and 2015, according to research firm EvaluatePharma.

However, major pharmaceutical companies and healthcare communications experts want audiences to know that ...