The final report of the Cass Review (pdf)was recently submitted to NHS in England. This report provides an evaluation of the current state of the science with respect to so-called transgender medical and psychological interventions while also making various recommendations for current treatment protocols and future research.

A few Key Findings of note:
– “While a considerable amount of research has been published in this field, systematic evidence reviews demonstrated the poor quality of the published studies, meaning there is not a reliable evidence base upon which to make clinical decisions, or for children and their families to make informed choices.”
– “The rationale for early puberty suppression remains unclear, with weak evidence regarding the impact on gender dysphoria, mental or psychosocial health. The effect on cognitive and psychosexual development remains unknown.”
– “Clinicians are unable to determine with any certainty which children and young people will go on to have an enduring trans identity.”

The bottom line is that, as we recently highlighted, there are no good data to support so-called transgender medicine, no matter what anyone claims. Indeed, the excruciating suffering experienced by those who feel their body does not match their experienced gender is only exacerbated by those who claim otherwise.

We appreciate that the Cass Review takes a clear-eyed view of the data. However, it should also be noted that the Review, not surprisingly, does not go as far as we would like, leaving the door open for continued treatment aimed at suppressing and changing secondary sex characteristics of those suffering from gender dysphoria.

This is the first study to look at all cause morality (and suicide-related mortality) as a function of transgender treatment while controlling for psychiatric disease.

The conclusion is that, given the same number of visits to a psychiatrist, those who were visited a transgender program in Finland were no more likely to die (all cause or by suicide) than those who had not visited such a center. Further, among those who did visit a transgender center, being treated for so-called gender reassignment did NOT lead to a lower likelihood of death.

While only one study, this is BIG!

We suspect this will prove to be only the first drop in an eventually very large sea of empiric evidence that attempting to change one’s body to match a feeling of gender is not the answer.

Given these data, it is only all the more important that we reach out to those suffering from gender dysphoria to offer loving support. The politicization of this issue has, as politicization always does, leaves individual human beings stuck in the middle.

St. Joseph, pray for us!