S. HRG. 108–814 ABUSE OF ANABOLIC STEROIDS AND THEIR PRECURSORS BY ADOLESCENT AMATEUR ATHLETES HEARING BEFORETHE SENATE CAUCUS ON INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS CONTROL ONE HUNDRED EIGHTH CONGRESS SECOND SESSION JULY 13, 2004 ( U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 98–053 PDF WASHINGTON : 2005 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512–1800; DC area (202) 512–1800 Fax: (202) 512–2250 Mail: Stop SSOP, Washington, DC 20402–0001 VerDate 03-FEB-2003 13:58 May 04, 2005 Jkt 098053 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 5011 Sfmt 5011 D:\DOCS\98053.TXT SSC1 PsN: SSC1 SENATE CAUCUS ON INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS CONTROL ONE HUNDRED EIGHTH CONGRESS CHARLES E. GRASSLEY, Iowa, Chairman JOSEPH R. BIDEN, JR., Delaware, Co-Chairman JEFF SESSIONS, Alabama BOB GRAHAM, Florida MIKE DEWINE, Ohio DIANNE FEINSTEIN, CALIFORNIA NORM COLEMAN, Minnesota ERIC AKERS, Staff Director MARCIA LEE, Minority Staff Director (II) VerDate 03-FEB-2003 13:58 May 04, 2005 Jkt 098053 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 D:\DOCS\98053.TXT SSC1 PsN: SSC1 C O N T E N T S OPENING STATEMENTS Page The Honorable Charles E. Grassley, U.S. Senator from Iowa ............................. 1 The Honorable Joseph R. Biden, U.S. Senator from Delaware ........................... 19 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 20 PANEL I Joseph T. Rannazzisi, Deputy Director, Office of Diversion Control, Drug Enforcement Administration ............................................................................... 11 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 12 Terrence P. Madden, Chief Executive Officer, U.S. Anti-Doping Agency ........... 15 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 17 William C. Martin, Donald R. Shepherd Director of Intercollegiate Athletics, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan ........................................... 21 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 23 PANEL II John Doe, (hidden witness), College Athlete, NCAA Division I Football Team . 34 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 36 Curtis A. Wenzlaff, Convict, Former User and Dealer of Illegal Steroids .......... 37 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 40 Don Hooten, Father; Son Committed Suicide After Using Steroids.................... 41 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 45 Don H. Catlin, M.D., Professor of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology, UCLA Analytical Laboratory .............................................................................. 50 Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 55 Questions for the Record: Joseph T. Rannazzisi........................................................................................ 98 Terrence P. Madden ......................................................................................... 95 Don H. Catlin, M.D. ......................................................................................... 93 (III) VerDate 03-FEB-2003 13:58 May 04, 2005 Jkt 098053 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 D:\DOCS\98053.TXT SSC1 PsN: SSC1 VerDate 03-FEB-2003 13:58 May 04, 2005 Jkt 098053 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 D:\DOCS\98053.TXT SSC1 PsN: SSC1 ABUSE OF ANABOLIC STEROIDS AND THEIR PRECURSORS BY ADOLESCENT AMATEUR ATHLETES TUESDAY, JULY 13, 2004 UNITED STATES SENATE, CAUCUS ON INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS CONTROL, Washington, DC. The Caucus met, pursuant to notice, at 9:52 a.m., in room SD-215, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Charles E. Grassley, Chairman of the Caucus, presiding. Present: Senators Grassley and Biden. OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. CHARLES E. GRASSLEY, U.S. SENATOR FROM IOWA Chairman GRASSLEY. Good morning, everybody, and I appreciate everybody who has come, and we are getting started just a little bit early. Normally I do not start without a member of the minority present, but Senator Biden is the Vice Chairman here, and he com- mutes regularly. His train is a little bit late, but he gave permis- sion for us to go ahead, so I am going to start. For more than two decades, the use of steroids by professional athletes has been widely reported. Indictments against executive officers of a San Francisco area nutritional supplements lab—and these indictments were Federal steroid distribution charges—have brought even more attention to the use of steroids. Recently, accu- sations of world-class track and baseball athletes using steroids have hit the news. But steroid use often begins even before athletes achieve international recognition. Today’s hearing will focus on the availability of illegal steroids and, of course, on the pressures that young athletes face to use steroids to improve their performance. Anabolic steroids are easily purchased over the Internet, as well as from users who sell and distribute steroids in gyms. The ease with which anybody, includ- ing young people, can acquire these drugs, coupled with the high percentage of purchased steroids that are counterfeit, even height- en the severe health risks to the users. Recent studies have shown that the use of illegal steroids has skyrocketed among high school and college athletes. Despite the widely publicized danger of anabolic steroid abuse, it is estimated that as many as 5 million people annually, even including 175,000 high school girls and 350,000 high school-aged boys, may be abus- ing these drugs to improve athletic performance, appearance, and self-image. In fact, those same studies have shown that some users (1) VerDate 03-FEB-2003 13:58 May 04, 2005 Jkt 098053 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6601 Sfmt 6601 D:\DOCS\98053.TXT SSC1 PsN: SSC1 2 start even younger, first using steroids while they are in middle school. These children are taking drugs to gain immediate enhance- ment of athletic performance. What has been most troubling is that some coaches, the very peo- ple we entrust to teach fair sportsmanship to our children and to care for their well-being, are promoting the use of steroids. The mind-set that winning comes before all else says to our kids that they should do whatever it takes to get bigger, to get stronger, and to get faster. Too often, young athletes see steroid use as the only way to comply with that coach’s demand. Winning at all costs places too great a risk to the health of our children and under- mines the element of fairness that we expect in sporting competi- tion. When I started to look at this problem, I was amazed at just how easy it is to get this poison. I found several websites where steroids and precursors can be purchased online. In fact, I found illegal steroids available on eBay! And if that is not bad enough, young athletes can buy the needles used to inject the illegal steroids di- rectly into their bodies on eBay as well. Example 1 that I show you here shows one of these sales on eBay where they advertise 1-inch needles to inject, and I quote, ‘‘DECA, D-BOL, TEST.’’ These are all terms for illegal steroids. This web page also says that these needles, and I quote, are ‘‘a must for those with gear,’’ and the word ‘‘gear’’ being a common code word for steroids. A second example, also taken from eBay, shows just how easy it is to buy steroids. Now, notice the category at the top of the poster that says the drugs are listed under ‘‘Health and Beauty.’’ Quite ironic, actually. We will hear from one witness, Dr. Catlin, a lead- ing expert on steroids, about the clear dangers to the health of those who take these illegal drugs. We will also hear from Don Hooten, whose son, Taylor, committed suicide as a result of abusing illegal steroids. Now, when you get right down to it, what beauty is there in the death of a young student? Again, example 2 offers the illegal steroid D-bol or Dianabol to any willing bidder. This fellow says that D-bol pills he is selling are, and I quote, ‘‘the real deal’’ and that he ‘‘used them personally and they’re awesome.’’ A personal endorsement, and according to this example, you get free shipping to boot! We have example 3 that shows how easy it is to get injectable steroids on the Internet. This seller has 10 ampules of Sustanon and 10 ampules of Deca-Durabolin. That’s referred to as ‘‘Deca.’’ This seller tries to pretend that he does not know what these drugs will be used for when he says, and I quote, ‘‘For vet use only.’’ What veterinarian would buy his medications on eBay? Injectable steroids are particularly dangerous to young abusers who do not know how to inject needles correctly. Infections, nerve damage, and even deadly disease can occur from the use of needles. Injecting steroids directly into the vein or artery can cause serious health risks. Others use clever tricks to hide their criminal intent. In example 4, this guy claims to be selling a ‘‘picture of D-bol.’’ Just a picture. Included in the description, he tells the buyer the lot number and expiration date of the picture. Indeed, he says, ‘‘The picture comes VerDate 03-FEB-2003 13:58 May 04, 2005 Jkt 098053 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6601 Sfmt 6601 D:\DOCS\98053.TXT SSC1 PsN: SSC1 3 in a sealed container with free priority mail.’’ By the way, the pic- ture sold for $60. In example 5, we see a seller who advertises a list of steroid dis- tributors that he got from ‘‘steroidworld.com.’’ The seller says that he has ‘‘100 percent success rate’’ and that the sellers on the list will, and I quote, ‘‘use labels which will hide the package’s con- tents.’’ So, I hope it is quite obvious and clear that these products are readily available. But to make matters worse, counterfeit steroids are also being sold widely. These fake drugs are very convincing in appearance. In front of us, you can see several examples of high- quality counterfeit steroids. Notice the quality of the packaging, la- beling, and inserts that are on the table. These steroids are fake but convincing. We will hear more about this today from a former steroid distributor and user, who will testify that 95 percent of the steroids on the market are not genuine. Fake steroids have been known to have a mixture of cooking oil—can you believe this?— even motor oil in the package. Imagine a high school student inject- ing motor oil into his or her body. I hope that today’s witnesses will help us all understand the problems here as well as some of the efforts being made to confront this menace. In addition to the testimony that we will hear today, we have also received written testimony from several different groups, which, if there is no objection, I will include in the record. [The information follows:] VerDate 03-FEB-2003 13:58 May 04, 2005 Jkt 098053 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6601 Sfmt 6601 D:\DOCS\98053.TXT SSC1 PsN: SSC1 4 VerDate 03-FEB-2003 13:58 May 04, 2005 Jkt 098053 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6601 Sfmt 6601 D:\DOCS\98053.TXT SSC1 PsN: SSC1 5 VerDate 03-FEB-2003 13:58 May 04, 2005 Jkt 098053 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6601 Sfmt 6601 D:\DOCS\98053.TXT SSC1 PsN: SSC1 6 VerDate 03-FEB-2003 13:58 May 04, 2005 Jkt 098053 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6601 Sfmt 6601 D:\DOCS\98053.TXT SSC1 PsN: SSC1