This is Brooke Gladstone with a podcast extra.

Last August, phlebancerin, or Addy, became the first FDA-approved drug aimed at treating sexual dysfunction in women.

Sprout, the company that developed it, was thrilled, even more so the next day when they were bought by pharmaceutical giant Valiant for $1 billion.

But then the story takes a sharp left turn.

As the Times reported this week, Valiant has become the poster child for unscrupulous drug

companies that buy up older drugs and jack up the prices.

It became a political issue,

sinking its stock price and triggering a cascade of setbacks.

Finally, this week, Valiant announced

that it had dismissed Flabancerin's entire sales force

and that it would reintroduce the drug later this year.

Maybe. All we know is that when we profiled the drug last summer, we focused on the sales message that flabansarin was revolutionary.

It was a game changer, but unlike an earlier similarly marketed drug, this one was prettier in pink.

Female Viagra, the little pink pill, as it's also known, is the first official drug to boost

sexual desire in women. Maybe you've heard about the so-called female Viagra.

Flabansarin is the name of the drug. It's known as the female Viagra, and many say it will be a game changer for women.

Female Viagra, why supporters of the drug argue it would be sexist not to approve this pill.

The little pink pill getting the green light from the Food and Drug Administration.

Flabansarin is the first prescription pill to boost libido in women.

Just as you know, flabansarin is not female Viagra, not even close.

Viagra was released in 1998 to fix a male plumbing problem by boosting blood flow to a certain

body part.

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