Armstronglivs, you have to understand that doctors and pharmacists expert of drugs are not expert of training, so don't know the physiiological variations athletes can have with proper training. I want to explain you some fact :
A) A hard training in altitude, lasting 4-5 months, oriented to increase the AEROBIC POWER, with adequate recovery between the most important training session, in order to use in the best way the principle of "overcompensation", produce an increase of the total volume of blood of 25% in the most talented athletes (specific talent for endurance). This is one of the points doctor/pharmacists don't know, and the official physiology doesn't think possible.
B) The above increase in the total volume is possible NOT for everybody, but for an estimated percentage (maybe 20% or less) of PARTICULARLY TALENTED ATHLETES, who have the level of elasticity of their circulatory system able to host 1 an half liter of blood MORE than the total volume before that type of training. I spoke of 80% (hypothetical) responder to blood doping, and of 20% (hypothetical) NOT responder, because that 20% includes all the athletes with the physiological situation I explained above.
C) If the physiological principle are the same for every human, the LEVELS of different physiological apparatus are INDIVIDUAL. For example, it's common belief that increasing the Hematocryt can automatically brings advantages in the transport of Oxygen, but this is not true. Every athletes has a NATURAL RANGE of Hct (for example, 42-45), and to enhance the level over that limit DOESN'T PRODUCE ANY EFFECT ON THE PERFORMANCE. Of course, it's true that more Hemoglobin can facilitate the transport of Oxygen, and any athlete can have advantage when the Hct is at HIS HIGHER INDIDUAL LEVEL, but if with every system we try to make Hct higher, in the body there is some compensation (I never read any study in that direction) that doesn't allow the body itself to perform better.
D) The assumption of EPO doesn't allow the body of the talented athletes (I above explained WHICH KIND OF TALENT) to increase the total volume to the same quantity achievable with proper training. We are therefore in a situation of balance between the increase of Hct taking EPO with the maintenance of the same total blood volume, and the big increase of the total volume of blood with lower Hct. We have to remember that the Hct is a number : the multiplication of the MCV (Mean Corpuscolar Volume) with RBC (Red Blood Cells, or erythrocytes). This means, for example, that a MCV of 85 with RBC of 5,650 (Hct 45) seems the same data of a MCV of 95 with RBC of 4,938 (Hct 45), BUT THESE TWO HCT WORK IN DIFFERENT WAY.
E) The difference of ANSWERS of the athlete's body to the same type of stimuli, in connection with the duration of the stimuli themselves and the current situation of the athlete. For example, training in a situation of hypossia creates, at the beginning, a situation of stress in the athlete, who reacts (again in 80% of the case, not 100%) increasing the production of new erythrocytes from the medulla, with obvious increase of the number of RBC. This is the typical situation of athletes normally training at sea level, going in altitude. But after some time (normally 5-7 weeks) the altitude doesn't continue to stimulate the athlete, because there is ADAPTATION. Adaptation means that the medulla is no longer stressed for producing new erythrocytes, the number of RBC starts to decrease a little, but at the same time the volume of every RBC becomes bigger because there is the increase of the plasmatic part. This is the typical situation of people living and training in altitude (including athletes born at sea level but with stays in altitude for long time, so it's not a genetic factor). Their blood, with the same level of Hct, is more fluid, and the periferal resistance is minor than when the Hct (with the same value) comes from the multiplication of more RBC with smaller MCV.
I don't say doping is useless for bettering personal performances, but we need to distinguish the final action of the illegal drug. Don't forget I always spoke of BLOOD DOPING or BLOOD MANIPULATION : in those events, the top athletes have a type of talent that can be exhalted in natural way with training, while taking EPO goes to limit the natural level reachable with training (the big increase n the total blood volume).
Also, if the physiological principles are the same for every body, the INDIVIDUAL CHARACTERISTICS are at the base for different performances. If this is not the case, while the performances are not the same for everybody, in the same conditions (everybody with or without doping) ?
At the end, I confirm again what I explained a thousand time to people who refuse to understand the reality, giving credit to studies that don't consider all the parameters I explained in the above points : STRONGER ATHLETES ARE, WEAKER IS THE ACTION OF DOPING. This doesn't means many strong athletes prefer to try some shortcut, but also doesn't mean they and who advice them are aware of what it's possible to reach with training only.