Do phalloplasties actually work?

[SilverTapz]

After wondering about this for a while, I ended up searching phalloplasty online and ended up on a Reddit page where people post their progress. I had never seen one before an was curious, I guess. It was actually quite shocking. People with what looks like no muscle left on their forearms, someone with a necrotic 'scrotum', someone where the stitches were wide open and the tip has turned black and left a gaping hole etc etc. People seem to be commenting saying that they look great, they've made the right decision etc, but honestly they look absolutely butchered. It's scary. And I guess my question is, do they actually function? Some of these people are so young and it's scary what they've done to their bodies. I can't help but think a lot of them will regret the decision. Is it mainly cosmetic? Can they orgasm? Honestly just very shocked by what I've seen!

Surely if the NHS is spending hundreds of thousands of pounds on surgeries that have neither a medical nor an ethical basis it is every taxpayer's business? There has never been a meaningful debate about whether taxpayers should be asked to fund what are at best cosmetic procedures and at worst grotesque mutilation. Successful outcomes and medical necessity are important factors when decisions are made about whether or not to fund other complex surgical procedures.

It’s not just a skin graft. They remove fat, blood vessels, nerves etc. if it was a skin graft it wouldn’t have to come from such a visible part of the body as the forearm and wouldn’t result in the massive indentation in the entire forearm that is very noticeable.

Oh, and one reason I object to young women being influenced into thinking they need cosmetic labiaplasties is the potential of irreversible damage to the clitoral nerves.

See: www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/clitoris-sexual-health-surgery-jessica-pin-b1938751.html

@493ruth“Do you often worry about whether strangers can orgasm?” Isn’t concern for the wellbeing of strangers part of being empathetic and also necessary for a functioning society? Isn’t that the entire basis of the charity sector?

Sorry, just catching up and haven't read all the replies, are these people who needed something removed because of penile cancer? I would hope just like for women with breast cancer, they can make their own choices but be empowered with honest information about potential results

No, they're female people who have undergone surgery on their bodies with the hope the procedures would create functioning facsimiles of male genitalia.

I can't believe allegedly grown-up allegedly sentient people can debate for real if 'people can create a functioning organ just like that'. FFS.

This is why it pisses me off when children are told "you can be whatever gender you want". No you can't and they are never told about the awful risks.

I feel terribly sad for anyone who is so unhappy they go through such serious and painful surgery. The complications sound horrific.
Having had so many painful essential surgeries myself, I would be devastated and so worried if my children felt the need to go this extreme. I’d be happy with them having any age appropriate partner, dressing however they want, going against gender norms etc but I would be gutted if they did irreversible surgery. It’s why I emphasize to my sons they can be whoever they want to be, dress or like whatever, but they will always be male.

Well they might be informed on some issues, but not this one.
Sometimes with the aid of pumps etc you can get an erection after phaloplasty. Does it work the same as a cis man’s penis, no. But they CAN be functional.
Would you be this concerned if your son had need of reconstructive surgery after cancer or an accident?

It’s interesting because as a person who lost a leg at the hip as well as pelvic muscle. my body looks very different to the norm. If I was to have reconstructive surgery I still wouldn’t look ‘normal’ but for me it would be fantastic. Who is anyone else to judge what I want my body to look like? Same goes for trans men.

Updated.

Some of those reddit frankindick images are grim.

this is the most reasonable response i think ive read of a thread of this kind on mumsnet, thank you

Surely the repair or reconstruction of body parts as a result of illness or injury is vastly different to the removal of healthy, functional body parts?
A phalloplasty is essentially a cosmetic procedure which, statistically is likely to cause significant complications. There is no good medical reason to conduct such an extreme surgery on an otherwise healthy body.

Trans people having these surgeries are aware of the risks, and the fact that the penis they end up with won’t function like a ‘real’ one. For some, the risk is worth it to not feel uncomfortable in their body whenever they go to the toilet, get undressed etc.

As a cis person I am grateful that I don’t have to weigh up the pros and cons of such a procedure, having a high-risk surgery with high rates of complications and lack of functionality vs. feeling so awful in my own skin that it’s unbearable to look at myself in a mirror.

Many of my trans friends have had top surgery (self funded in most cases) but won’t have a phallopasty due to the risks (some of which you’ve seen yourself). It’s such a personal thing and I feel sad for people born with gender dysphoria, because to most people the risks are just way too high to ever consider it.

Would also recommend a hobby that doesn’t involve looking at random strangers’ genitals on Reddit.

Yes.

Because taking puberty blockers can stop you from ever orgasming. I don't think a child who has never experienced an orgasm can consent to never having one.

No they don't 'work' they can look a bit like penis but that is as close as it gets.

It’s not different, because to s trans person there is something massively wrong with their body. A persons mental health is as much a medical reason as any other. We have been doing ‘cosmetic’ surgery for mental health reasons for a long time now.

Were you this concerned about puberty blockers for precocious puberty?

The absolute hysteria over trans people on this website is…I don’t know if it’s funny or just really sad. And it’s quite clear from the way replies are worded that most of the people responding don’t actually have a thought of their own, they just parrot back responses they’ve seen on this app.
Mumsnet used to be a great place to visit, but it’s totally jumped the shark these days.

of course they are told of the risks! Do you imagine some dodgy doctor with long coat on is handing out puberty blockers and phalloplasty and not explaining the risks of both??

It is a medical scandal of course which is why anyone discussing it critically needs to be banned from the internet. Trans people may have existed from ages ago but apart from castration, there was no medical intervention offered to them. It is only from the 1930's that frankenstein surgeries were attempted and these days offered as standard medical "care" together with a shitload of synthetic hormones. The effect of testosterone on female biology is something else.

The science hasnt changed much but what has changed is the ideological stance in the medical establishment that such surgery is life saving and never to be critically analysed. I tend to the view that the greatest victims in such ideological capture are trans people themselves. The post surgery depression and unhappiness points to it.

Sorry the fingerwagging lectures no longer work.

It is mutilation of a functioning body to surgically respond to a mental issue (body dysmorphia)

it is not reconstructive surgery for a damaged body…

Well precocious puberty is halted temporarily and then the child goes through puberty as normal.

As the previous poster rightly indicated, puberty blockers for gender dysphoria cause the inability to orgasm - and god knows what other brain issues due to not going through puberty as normal. There's massive brain development at puberty - mess around with that at your (or your child's) peril.