In a stark departure from other medical associations, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons broke ranks over the trans issue over the summer. In a statement to City Journal for a recent story, the medical association stated it “has not endorsed any organization’s practice recommendations for the treatment of adolescents with gender dysphoria.”
City Journal quoted Sheila Nazarian, a Beverly Hills plastic surgeon, in its story. She said her ASPS colleagues share concerns about treating transgender children with hormones and surgeries, but they also fear professional and public blowback if they speak out.
The term “gender dysphoria” in the ASPS statement is a newer definition for the now-scrapped term Gender Identify Disorder. That medical term was used by the American Psychological Association to describe mentally confused patients, who say they feel born outside the wrong body, but the APA caved to transgender activists and voted to change the term to "gender dysphoria" in 2012.
Similarly, the use of body-altering hormones and body-chopping surgeries is called “gender-affirming care” by its proponents and by much of the media.
Dr. Steven Williams, president of the ASPS, told Fox News the medical association is concerned about a lack of evidence to support medical procedures of minors.
“The real issue is, as physicians, we’re driven by evidence,” he said. “This is a newly-developing field and, for adolescents right now, the evidence, there’s just not enough of it yet.”
William's public stance is a risky one since LGBT activists routinely intimidate their enemies by insisting merely "misgendering" or "deadnaming" transgender people could lead to suicide.
Most of the surgeries performed on minors are “top” surgeries, the surgeon said, which means removing the breasts of a girl to make her feel and appear to be a male.
Reacting to the ASPS stance, former transgender Walt Heyer told the “Washington Watch” program the medical group is hesitant because it knows it is merely altering the body.
“They haven't ever changed anybody's gender. This is all plastic surgery,” Heyer, who lived as a woman for many years, told the program.
“It's folklore,” Heyer continued. “And kids need to know that their gender doesn't change when they do these procedures to them. And parents need to know as well."
Heyer, a senior fellow at Family Research Council, said he has received letters from people who know his story and tell him they also that went through so-called transitions and regretted it months and years later.
Although gender identify disorder has been recognized by the APA for many years, Heyer said he has watched “transgender” become trendy among young people. So he attributes that to the “big spike” in children identifying as transgender.
