Hormone Therapy for Transgender Men

Abstract

Like transgender women (Chap. 5), sex steroid hormones play an important role in gender-confirming therapies of transgender men to modify the external physical appearance to align with gender identity. Most transgender men seeking gender-confirming surgeries will already have started gender-confirming sex steroid hormone therapy. Under medical supervision, hormone therapy appears to be safe (Weinand JD, Safer JD, J Clin Transl Endocrinol. 2: 55-60, 2015 Jun). The surgeon should be aware that some patients may receive hormone therapy without a prescription or routine medical monitoring, which may lead to increased risk (Seal LJ, Franklin S, Richards C, Shishkareva A, Sinclaire C, Barrett J., J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 97: 4422-8, 2012 Dec). Surgeons and other health-care providers should understand the goals of gender-affirming hormone therapy along with its potential pitfalls.