 The company's name comes from the adjective "cephalic" meaning "related to the head or brain", as it was established primarily to pursue treatments for neurodegenerative diseases.As noted by "fundinguniverse.com", in its early years, 
"Cephalon initially avoided involving itself in activities that would require maintaining a sales staff, managing clinical trials, and shepherding new drugs through the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval process.With no product to sell, Cephalon's only asset was its scientific expertise.