Stop gender ideology in healthcare

The Cass report is the result of a four-year in-depth review of gender care for children and young people in the UK, led by Dr Hilary Cass on behalf of the NHS England (National Health Service). It includes around 9000 patients who were treated at the Gender Identity Development Services at the Tavistock in London. The report assesses negatively how health care for children with gender confusion has been guided by activism, based on an ideology and has put kids on a life-changing trajectory, instead of being based on robust evidence. The outcome of the report is clear: there is insufficient evidence to justify the use of medical interventions to treat gender dysphoria (i.e., a feeling of dissatisfaction with one’s biological sex).

Studies show that in most cases gender dysphoria is a temporary phase, often associated with neurodiversity, mental health issues, childhood trauma or same-sex attraction. There is no reliable method to know who will and who will not outgrow it. How can it then be medically justified the prescription of hormonal and surgical interventions that cause irreversible damage to brain development, fertility, bone density, mental health, and sexual functioning, among other things?

The often-heard argument – that transition is lifesaving – has been knocked down. The systematic reviews failed to provide evidence that interventions with puberty blockers and hormones reduce suicide rates. In addition, the number of suicides after the medical transition is worrisome. A long-term study from 2011 found that people who transition to a medical term are more than 19 times more likely to die by suicide than the general population.

The report also addressed social transition – i.e., treating the child as if they were of the opposite sex – concluding that this cannot be considered a neutral intervention since it can have consequences in psychological functioning, posing a significant risk in the long term. The report advises not to follow this path, especially in the case of young children, as it can profoundly change their developmental trajectory.

Detransition – i.e., regretting transition – is becoming a growing phenomenon that can no longer be ignored. A recent American study, that followed patients who underwent medical transition for an average of four years, shows that 30% stopped this process.

The Cass report recommends a total overhaul of the medica care and societal support offered to children and young people with gender issues. These young people deserve to be treated with the same level of scientific rigorousness as anyone else and not as a separate project driven by activists seeking affirmation of their own adult identity and believes.

Currently, the NHS plans to extend the research to gender clinics for adults. Whistleblowers confirm that young adults aged 18 to 25 in particular are often psychologically vulnerable, and deserve similar protection to minors.

The Cass report has global implications. Following in the footsteps of other countries, such as the UK, Sweden, Finland and Denmark, it is time to impose a moratorium on these experimental treatments in our country as well.

It is our hope that this report will be a turning point in which common sense and scientific rigour prevails, and where the doctor's oath 'Primum non nocere' (First, do no harm) will once again become the guiding principle.