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EPO and cycling the facts
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| jeronemango |
some of you might flame me for this,but ive just lost interest in a sport i have grown up with.
here is some info about the drug which has killed the sport of cycling...
I was involved in cycling for many years,training with some of the ex pros and i tell you some of the stories are pretty amazing eg some current pros on their death beds and taking hugh amounts of asprin to bring down their blood viscosity.The help lance has had with Michele Ferrari only adds more controversity to this book which is coming out.So many riders have addmitted to taking EPO and these riders have always been tested, take david miller for example, the stage winner gets tested, miller has won stages and been tested and passed the only reason he got caught was because he admitted in front of court.EPO is so hard to test for as its natually occuring in the body and everyones levels are different.and synthetic EPO doesnt stay in ur system for very long so testing is useless.. here is some info for you all..i know its long but im just sick of people thinking these people are great athelets, they are great cheats....
EPO is a hormone naturally produced by the kidneys when oxygen supply is low. Thus natural EPO concentrations in the blood increase when a cyclist is anemic, has been training at altitude, or has been exposed to pollution or second-hand cigarette smoke. EPO acts as a signal for the bone marrow to increase the rate at which red blood cells are made and released into the circulation (this can be measured as the reticulocyte count). The increase in number of red blood cells leads to an increased oxygen supply to the tissues throughout the body. This oxygen rich blood then acts as a signal to the kidneys to stop producing EPO keeping the hematocrit within the normal range.
Synthetic EPO has been made by inserting the human gene responsible for EPO into a cell within a laboratory and then stimulating the cell to produce recombinant EPO (r-EPO). r-EPO was developed by pharmaceutical companies for treating patients with kidney failure, or those undergoing cancer chemotherapy. R-EPO assists these patients in raising their hematocrit and oxygen carrying capacity, ameliorating the symptoms of their chronic disease. Early clinical trials showed that r-EPO is capable of increasing the hematocrit (index of red blood cell level) by 3-4% over 3-4 weeks.
It is documented that the endurance process is improved in athletes with an increased red blood cell level, and thus an increased oxygen carrying capacity. This occurs whether the red blood cells are increased via transfusion, or artificially with r-EPO. Improvements in performance are greatest about 3 weeks after r-EPO injection.
Although no direct links have been made between EPO and cycling deaths, anecdotal evidence is abundant. Too much r-EPO can increase hematocrit to the point that overall blood viscosity is increased making the blood like sludge. This thickened blood could cause the heart to work excessively hard, which may lead to a heart attack. Increasing hematocrit also increases the risk in the cyclist for clotting events, raises blood pressure, and resultant iron overload can ultimately lead to organ failure. Evidence has shown that long term EPO use may also possibly contribute to blood borne cancers.
Despite the potentially fatal risks, it is apparent that many professional cyclists may be using EPO to improve performance. Because EPO potentially gives an unfair advantage in competition, it has been banned by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI). As EPO is a natural body substance it is very hard to detect by conventional (direct) testing methods. Levels of synthetic EPO can be detected, but the half-life is so short, that r-EPO is out of the system within 6-12 hours. Other detection methods have been focused on abnormally high hematocrit levels. In Geneva in 1997, the UCI implemented an upper level of normal for hematocrit of 50%, and 2.4 for the reticulocyte count. Those cyclists testing higher than these levels are then subjected to the more accurate French urine test, which is an indirect test that looks for specific biomechanical properties of synthetic EPO using sophisticated laboratory techniques (gel electrophoresis).
What is next for cycling? Medical technology, in its wisdom to discover new methods to increase the oxygen carrying capacity for patients with chronic diseases, has given rise to several potentially new performance enhancers. Blood substitutes such as perfluorocarbon emulsions, stabilized hemoglobin, and recombinant hemoglobin can improve performance by increasing oxygen carrying capacity, without yielding false results in current blood tests. Other performance enhancers being used are steroids and growth hormone, which allow for greater lean muscle mass and a faster recovery from maximal effort. On the horizon, genetic engineering may profoundly alter the course of competitive sport by allowing scientists to inject genes directly into the athlete to enhance performance.
Greg lemond is one rider i only respect a true champion...his doubts with lance confirm what i always thought.... |
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| NooKLeaR |
| Only in this day and age, people cannot just be naturally good. When records are broken, accusations are made. People can't accept the fact that maybe there are people out there that are better, so they just make accusations with little or no support. I have lost a lot of respect for Lemond, it's just disapointing... |
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| jeronemango |
| little or no support ? hmm i guess the book will shed some light on this... |
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| NooKLeaR |
| If the book has so much support, why is it only being released in France, and getting sued for slander. How many times has Lance tested positive for any kind of doping in his whole career? That's right. Zero times. Gawd, the things people come to so they can make others look bad and glorify themeselves. |
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