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August 1, 2006
Everyone's a Hematologist This Year
"Everyone was Jason that year."One sorta positive side-effect of the downward spiralling Landis affair is that almost every cycling fan I know is turning into a self-taught hematologist. I never imagined I would have so many conversations with non-doctors about hematocrit percentages, reticulocytes, NESP, and rhEPO and IRMS tests.
-- Thomas Pynchon, Vineland (1984)
Relatedly, there is some harrowing data on blood doping among performance athletes in this UCI study, including useful time series hematocrit graphs from competition:
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Interesting point, John. As unexpected as it might seem, the dopers do have more data points, which makes life considerably easier for them than external observers might think.
In Landis' case, the presence of synthetic testosterone, with an overall testosterone/epitestosterone ratio of 11/1 (with the limit at 4/1 and average person less than 2/1) is pretty devastating evidence. The Tyler Hamilton affair, with the homo/hetero blood transfusion and reticulocyte ratios was excuse for my initial internet-based-course cycling hematology. (And more strangely, also led to a debate as to whether an injection of Cheetah blood would help me win some sprints.)
Dopers are very good, and they have access to more data points than the testers. (Landis passed his yellow jersey drug tests the day before and two days after!) Time series data on every rider could further clear things up--in the linked article it took a year to get a positive test on a guy they were pretty sure was doping!