“42%… compared with what?”
At 4:42 PM, Daniel was placing the final headline on a promotional visual for fictional Treatment X in adults with fictional Condition Y. He adjusted the font, stepped back, and nodded in satisfaction.
Daniel looked up as Maya leaned over his workstation. “Take a look. Clean, punchy, and backed by the trial numbers.”
The draft headline read:
“Treatment X reduced symptoms by 42% at Week 12.”
Maya studied the layout quietly. “Forty-two percent compared with what?”
Daniel responded immediately: “The baseline.”
Maya paused. “That’s not what the headline tells me.”
Daniel frowned slightly. The math in his spreadsheet was exact. Why was Maya questioning a headline built directly from the study results?
“42%… compared with what?”