Puberty blocker ban R4

[Davros]

To be discussed on this morning's Woman's Hour

Placemarking

Think I'll read the reactions, and listen later for the sake of my blood pressure.

I was listening. Well done Deb Cohen for doing your job so professionally in the face of the howling mob. I thought Nuala McG handled the interview very fairly too.

Yes, it was worth a listen. This is Deborah Cohen's article on the subject https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clyd2qe5kkjo

Thank you for signing posting this.

Very interesting about equipoise (I hope I’ve spelt that right) and the ethics committee approval. Plus that a trial can based on initial results lead to treatment being opened up or withdrawn.

I haven't listened to it yet but I'm finding the debate on this really quite an eye opener. The way that these drugs are discussed, the cutesy, childish language used to describe them ('puberty blockers'), the fact that no-one will address the elephant in the room, which is that so called trans children have normal healthy bodies and therefore the drugs are being used for purely cosmetic reasons. It's madness. Their bodies are fine. It's not healthcare if your body is healthy and fine. It's something else entirely.

We know from the other groups that these drugs are used with (men with prostate cancer, women with severe endometriosis, girls with precocious puberty) that the side effects are consistent across all groups and are severe.
It's not just a temporary headache or a mild upset tummy, they can cause long term irreversible damage to bones amongst other things and this is a serious problem. When I see the BBC publish articles about young women who have been put on them for endo pain management, and they talk about 'chemical menopause' and the horrendous side effects, I wonder how many members of the general public have the first clue that these are the same drugs. FWIW I have been on them twice for this purpose, I know exactly what they're like, and giving them to a healthy 12yo who cannot possibly give informed consent is unethical. I don't see how parents can consent either. We wouldn't let a parent consent to breast implants for a twelve year old boy.

Glad to see your support for early intervention with CSH since the concessionary gatekeeping measure of blockers is apparently too dangerous

We know from the other groups that these drugs are used with (men with prostate cancer, women with severe endometriosis, girls with precocious puberty) that the side effects are consistent across all groups and are severe.

Yes.

Thanks for flagging this, I'll tune in later.

Deb Cohen is an excellent researcher and journalist. I look forward to her forthcoming book.

Well said:
"It's not healthcare if your body is healthy and fine. It's something else entirely".

DontStopMe · Today 10:54

Yes, it was worth a listen. This is Deborah Cohen's article on the subject

It's a shame that she described WPATH as experts, rather than the highly partial and unethical, self referential group that they are. It was good that she went into the side effects, that may change the minds of some waverers.

It's not an article I'd expected to see on the BBC website, that's for sure!