Puberty blockers banned for under-18s with gender dysphoria ‘indefinitely’
The Department of Health and Social Care have banned the use of puberty blockers in the UK for those under 18 indefinitely.
The Commission on Human Medicines (CHM) published independent expert advice that there is ‘currently an unacceptable safety risk in the continued prescription of puberty blockers to children’, they said.
Puberty blockers, which pause the physical changes of puberty such as breast development or facial hair, will now only be available to children as part of clinical research trials.
In March, fewer than 100 young people were actively using puberty blockers.
Dr Hilary Cass, who wrote the Cass Review into children’s gender care and published her final report in April, described puberty blockers as ‘powerful drugs with unproven benefits and significant risks’.
She said: ‘That is why I recommended that they should only be prescribed following a multi-disciplinary assessment and within a research protocol.
‘I support the Government’s decision to continue restrictions on the dispensing of puberty blockers for gender dysphoria outside the NHS where these essential safeguards are not being provided.’
What are puberty blockers?
Puberty blockers can be used to pause the physical changes of puberty, such as breast development or facial hair.
They work by blocking the hormones — testosterone and estrogen — that lead to puberty-related changes in the body.
The medicines most often used for this purpose are called gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH).
Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said there is a need to ‘act with caution’ and ‘follow the expert advice’ in caring for this ‘vulnerable group of young people’.
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He said: ‘Children’s healthcare must always be evidence-led. The independent expert Commission on Human Medicines found that the current prescribing and care pathway for gender dysphoria and incongruence presents an unacceptable safety risk for children and young people.
‘Dr Cass’s review also raised safety concerns around the lack of evidence for these medical treatments. We need to act with caution and care when it comes to this vulnerable group of young people, and follow the expert advice.
‘We are working with NHS England to open new gender identity services, so people can access holistic health and wellbeing support they need.
‘We are setting up a clinical trial into the use of puberty blockers next year, to establish a clear evidence base for the use of this medicine.’
What is gender dysphoria?
Gender dysphoria is a sense of distress or unease someone may feel about the gender they were assigned at birth.
This could come in the form of a person born as a male feeling uncomfortable with that label, or a person born female not aligning with that label.
It was listed as a mental disorder until 2018, but was removed from the list by the World Health Organisation.
An emergency ban on the use of the blockers in youth with gender dysphoria had been previously implemented by the Conservative government.
Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Wes Streeting previously said they would ‘always put the safety of children first’.
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