An “unethical” NHS puberty blocker trial has been threatened with legal action by campaigners.
Lawyers acting for Keira Bell, a former patient of the Tavistock Clinic, which was shut down amid controversy over its gender identity treatment for children, say the planned trial is “unethical and unlawful”.
Ms Bell, a biological woman who was given puberty blockers and had surgery to become a trans man, regretted the decision and has now “de-transitioned”.
The drugs are indefinitely banned in the UK after Wes Streeting, the Health Secretary, extended a temporary ban imposed by the previous government.
But under current plans, children and teenagers with gender dysphoria or confusion will still be able to access them as part of an upcoming NHS clinical trial.
In her independent review into children’s transgender services, Dr Hilary Cass said there was “remarkably weak” evidence to support the use of the drugs and they “may permanently disrupt the brain maturation of adolescents, potentially rewiring neural circuits that cannot be reversed”.
Dr Cass, now Baroness Cass, recommended they only be prescribed as part of a clinical trial to gather more evidence about their safety and effectiveness.
Well yes, but that was surely an unfortunate sop by Cass to the gender activists, who she knew would be outraged by her report – and who she knew were very powerful and highly vocal.
Mr Esses, the founder of Just Therapy, whose clients include gender dysphoria patients, said: “Vulnerable children should never be used as guinea pigs.
“The potentially unlimited numbers of children participating in a proposed clinical trial of puberty blockers would be treated worse than guinea pigs.
“Why? Because our Government is already fully aware of the significant, irreversible, physical and emotional harm that comes from puberty blockers.
“Study after study, culminating in the Cass Review, has demonstrated this. The very review now being misappropriated to justify these trials.”…
Stephanie Davies-Aria, the founder and director of TransgenderTrend, an organisation calling for evidence-based health care, said: “Puberty is an essential growth stage for a child to go through to reach adulthood. The sex hormones released at puberty are vital for healthy male or female development.
“It is unethical to experiment on children’s bodies in order to find out how serious and long-lasting those harms will be. A child cannot weigh the risks of an interrupted puberty which may impact their fertility, sexual function and brain and bone development. It is unclear what the purpose of the treatment is or what such a trial would achieve.”
Puberty blockers are powerful drugs – effectively chemical castration. It's outrageous to propose using these drugs on troubled children as part of a clinical trail. All children need to go through puberty.
Mick Hartley 
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