A New Paper Reveals Devastating Harms of Cross-Sex Hormones
In recent years, administering estrogen to males who identify as transgender women has become increasingly common, including among adolescents. Often paired with testosterone blockers, this treatment is marketed as part of gender-affirming care a term used to describe medical interventions intended to align a person s body with his or her gender identity. But as more young people pursue medical transition in the absence of long-term studies, concerns about safety, efficacy, and informed consent have grown more urgent.
A recent review article in Discover Mental Health, entitled Emerging and accumulating safety signals for the use of estrogen among transgender women, and authored by Lauren Schwartz and colleagues, tries to fill that gap. It compiles studies, case reports, and group data to spotlight a range of serious health risks some well-known, others emerging associated with long-term estrogen use in males.
Colin Wright