The Medical University of South Carolina initially said it wouldn’t be affected by a law banning use of state funds for treatment “furthering the gender transition” of children under 16. Months later, it cut off that care to all trans minors.
One Saturday morning in September 2022, Terrence Steyer, the dean of the College of Medicine at the Medical University of South Carolina, placed an urgent call to a student. Just a year prior, the medical student, Thomas Agostini, had won first place at a university-sponsored event for his graduate research on transgender pediatric patients. He also had been featured in a video on MUSC’s website highlighting resources that support the LGBTQ+ community.
Now, Agostini and his once-lauded study had set off a political firestorm. Conservative activists seized on one line in particular in the study’s summary — a parenthetical noting the youngest transgender patient to visit MUSC’s pediatric endocrinology clinic was 4 years old — and inaccurately claimed that children that young were prescribed hormones as part of a gender transition. Elon Musk amplified the false claim, tweeting, “Is it really true that four-year-olds are receiving hormone treatment?” That led federal and state lawmakers to frantically ask top MUSC leaders whether the public hospital was in fact helping young children medically transition. The hospital was not; its pediatric transgender patients did not receive hormone therapy before puberty, nor does it offer surgical options to minors.
The fact that you describe “hacking body parts” off is already an indicator that you have no idea what you are talking about. Many, many trans people never even have surgery and surgeries are not really just chopping bits off. My mastectomy was an outpatient procedure where they sucked some fat out through a tube - essentially what they would do if I was cis and had gynecomastia. Plenty of cisgender men have low testosterone and take the same injections I do.
except low test men aren’t doing it in an attempt to fix a core discomfort with their own identity, you deserve real help instead of bandage fixes.
I have zero discomfort with my own identity. I am a man whose body doesn’t produce enough testosterone. Conversion therapy is not “real help” and is not effective.
I made no mention of conversion therapy, but I am happy you are content with yourself now.
You continue to suggest that trans people get “real help” which you do not believe is gender affirming care. What method are you suggesting, if not conversion therapy?