DOCTOR, IS PROCRIT A STEROID? I NEED TO KNOW RIGHT NOW. I'VE ASKED MY DOC BUT HE JUST GIVES ME THE RUN AROUND AND DAMN IT I WANT ANSWERS AND I WANT THEM RIGHT NOW. THIS IS DRIVING ME RIGHT ROUND THE BEND. WHY WON'T ANYONE FRICKIN' ANSWER ME? I'M READY TO GO POSTAL OR IF I DON'T FIND OUT SOON. SO GET OFF YOUR ASS AND TELL ME WHAT I WANT TO KNOW. THANKS, DUDE

Dude,

I take it that you dropped out of the anger management classes, right? And that certified drama reduction program doesn't appear to be going all that well for you either, now does it? Can we ratchet down the the stress and urgency levels here just a bit? Now take three big cleansing yoga breaths. Go ahead. We'll wait. There, feeling better? Now on to your question.

No, Procrit is not a steroid. Procrit is a medication that is identical to a substance your body produces naturally called "erythropoietin." Erythropoietin is a hormone that stimulates red blood cell production.

Perhaps your confusion arose because in addition to erythropoietin (not a steroid), other hormones that can indirectly stimulate red blood cell production include adrenal hormones and testosterone. These are indeed steroids. OK?

Now hopefully you can chill out a bit. If not, I suggest you start researching a medication called Ativan.

Dr. Bob