The objectives of this study include identification of general patterns of euphemisms referring to social diseases, establishing of specific euphemisms for social diseases, and identification of the euphemism's susceptibility to linguistic and cultural transfer. Based on scientific or popular scientific articles, our analysis of euphemisms resulted , according to subject matter, in distinguishing six separate categories: 1) medical deception; 2) incurable diseases, or possibly lethal diseases; 3) sexually transmitted diseases; 4) physical abnormalities, 5) mental abnormalities; and 6) addictions. As a result, we should note that substitutive names are predominantly represented with foreign words acquired through linguistic and cultural transfer from English into Russian, as well as from Latin and Greek. Besides, they are mainly words with generalized semantics. The specificity of euphemistic formation and the use of such terms often depends on the features of the professional environment where they are used, as well as on general goals and objectives of a certain professional activity. In this case, medical ethics and medical secrecy play an important role.