Doctors’ Group Defends Biological Sex

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TUCSON, Ariz. (ChurchMilitant.com) - A decades-old medical association is denouncing so-called gender-affirming care for adolescents.

In a statement released earlier this week, the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS) warned against sex-change treatments' long-term, irreparable harm:

Conflicting motivations have led to a growing industry dedicated to providing "gender-affirming" procedures that are generally irreversible and have a high probability of causing sterilization. These include puberty "blockers," sex hormones, and surgery, such as castration, penectomy, and mastectomy. They commit a patient to a lifelong need for medical, surgical, and psychological care.

Representing 5,000 medical professionals across the United States, the AAPS, through its announcement, also called out the lack of authentic care for young patients when doctors tinker with their physical appearance.

The release explained "'[g]ender-affirming care' in minors is medically and ethically contraindicated because of a lack of informed consent. There are inherently unknown and unknowable long-term risks, and the consequences of removing normal, healthy organs are irreversible."

The American Medical Association, another professional organization that fervently supports the transitioning of minors, stresses informed consent to medical treatment is fundamental in both ethics and law.

Obtaining informed consent, it states, requires a physician to assess a patient's ability to understand relevant medical information and the implications of treatment alternatives and to make an independent, voluntary decision.

'Detransitioners' Speak Out

Several young adults who "transitioned" in their youth — only to regret it later — agree they were incapable of providing informed consent when they chose to undergo surgical procedures.

Chloe Cole, considered a vocal "detransitioner," has lamented in several interviews that her decision to exchange her biological sex for a fraudulent facade was an uninformed one.

She told Sky News in December, "I wasn't fully informed of all the risks and I'm not the only one who is in this situation." Cole revealed, "I've had side effects from the puberty blockers, the cross-sex hormones, as well as the double mastectomy."

"No kid is equipped to make this kind of decision," she added.

Helena Kerschner also returned to living life as a female after years presenting as a male. The young adult admits mental health challenges, influences found on social media, and guidance from non-parental adults played a role in her decision to alter her body.

"It's just devastating to, especially from a young age, be lied to by adults at school and by medical professionals, and told that your body is wrong, you need to change it, you need to get hormones, you need to get surgeries. That's devastating for a young person," Kerschner rued.

Cole is pursuing legal action against the doctors who advised and treated her. Kerschner, like Cole, is committed to raising awareness to protect children suffering from gender dysphoria.

As more young adults speak out against the dangers of so-called transitioning, it's also encouraging for concerned parents, especially, to see medical professionals sounding the alarm.

The politically conservative, pro-life AAPS took criticism during the COVID panic for promoting hydroxychloroquine as an early treatment even though the National Institutes of Health published studies supporting that view. 

'Do No Harm'

The AAPS, first established in 1943, has had such notable members as Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ken., and his father, Ron Paul, a former congressman. AAPS members contend their aim is to uphold the Hippocratic Oath, which asks physicians to "do no harm" to patients.

The recent AAPS statement seemingly supports that oath as it also asserts, "Physicians and medical professionals should refuse to be mandated or coerced to participate in procedures to which they have ethical or scientific objections or which they believe would harm a patient."

The statement also affirms such truths found to be unpopular in most medical circles today, such as "[c]hanging physical appearance does not change biological sex." 

Legislative Efforts

Earlier this month, South Dakota became the sixth state to restrict purported gender-affirming care for minors when Gov. Kristi Noem signed the "Help Not Harm" bill.

Mississippi is set to become the seventh state to limit so-called transgender care when Gov. Tate Reeves signs House Bill 1125.

Reeves vowed Tuesday to soon sign the child-protection legislation, exclaiming "Sterilizing and castrating children in the name of new gender ideology is wrong."

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