Oxymetholone
Also known as: anadrol, drol
The 'anadrol' steroid: one of the strongest orals available, and one of the hardest on the liver and blood pressure.
Legal status: UK: Class C controlled drug and prescription-only medicine. Supplying it (including to friends) and importing it by post are criminal offences; personal possession for your own use generally is not. Checked 2026-07-26.
Prohibited in sport: Yes — on the WADA Prohibited List.
Approved medical use: Licensed in some countries for anaemias caused by deficient red-cell production, including that of bone-marrow failure.
What it is
Oxymetholone is a potent 17-alpha-alkylated oral steroid. It produces fast increases in body weight, a large part of which is fluid rather than tissue. It retains a genuine medical role in treating certain anaemias, where its ability to stimulate red cell production is the point.
In its licensed uses it is given under close haematological and hepatic supervision to people with serious anaemia, where the risk-benefit calculation is entirely different from a performance one.
What’s claimed
- Very rapid weight and strength gain
- A dramatic increase in fullness and 'pump'
- A kick-start to a longer regimen
What the evidence shows
That it increases weight and lean mass in clinical populations is well-supported (Gold): the clinical literature in HIV-associated wasting and in anaemia is real. What the folklore understates is how much of the early weight is water, how sharply it raises blood pressure, and how consistently it produces hepatic strain. It is among the least forgiving compounds in this library.
The risks
- Hepatic: 17-alpha-alkylation lets the compound survive digestion and is the same change that burdens the liver; raised liver enzymes, and in rarer cases cholestasis or peliosis hepatis.
- Cardiovascular: pronounced fluid retention and some of the sharpest blood-pressure rises seen with any oral steroid.
- Lipids: marked lowering of HDL ('good') cholesterol and raising of LDL, an adverse cardiovascular shift that is more pronounced with oral compounds.
- Oestrogenic: gynaecomastia and bloating, despite oxymetholone itself not aromatising in the usual way; it has direct oestrogenic activity.
- Endocrine: suppression of the body's own testosterone production, with testicular atrophy and impaired fertility. Recovery is not guaranteed and can be slow or incomplete.
- Psychiatric: headaches, irritability and mood disturbance are commonly reported.
What needs monitoring
- Full blood count, including haematocrit and haemoglobin
- Lipid profile
- Blood pressure
- Liver and kidney markers
- Testosterone and the wider hormonal axis: a doctor is the right person to arrange these tests and to interpret what they show.
Sources
- NHS. Anabolic steroid misuse — health risks and the law.
- GOV.UK. Controlled drugs: Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 drug classes.
- World Anti-Doping Agency. The Prohibited List.
- Pope HG, et al. Adverse health consequences of performance-enhancing drugs: an Endocrine Society scientific statement. Endocr Rev. 2014;35(3):341-375.