This Requires More Research

Back in the seventies and eighties, medical providers started to notice a trend in women whose mother’s took a drug called DES (Diethylstilbestrol) to prevent miscarriages, The DES Daughters were at risk of  clear cell adenocarcinoma (CCA) of the vagina and cervix, reproductive tract structural differences, pregnancy complications, and infertility, while the DES Sons had an increased risk for non-cancerous epididymal cysts.

Many trans women all believe that it increased the chances of having some degree of Gender Dysphoria. Now there is another drug that possiblely might have an effect on us.

Women Fear Drug They Used To Halt Puberty Led To Health Problems
Kaiser Health Network
By Christina Jewett
February 2, 2017

For years, Sharissa Derricott, 30, had no idea why her body seemed to be failing. At 21, a surgeon replaced her deteriorated jaw joint. She’s been diagnosed with degenerative disc disease and fibromyalgia, a chronic pain condition. Her teeth are shedding enamel and cracking.

None of it made sense to her until she discovered a community of women online who describe similar symptoms and have one thing in common: All had taken a drug called Lupron.

Thousands of parents chose to inject their daughters with the drug, which was approved to shut down puberty in young girls but also is commonly used off-label to help short kids grow taller.

The drug’s pediatric version comes with few warnings about long-term side effects. It is also used in adults to fight prostate cancer or relieve uterine pain and the Food and Drug Administration has warnings on the drug’s adult labels about a variety of side effects.

More than 10,000 adverse event reports filed with the FDA reflect the experiences of women who’ve taken Lupron. The reports describe everything from brittle bones to faulty joints.

So what is the trans connection?

Well trans children take Lupron to stop puberty so are they at risk?

We do not know because that is another “off label” use of the drug and we don’t have any data on its use by trans children and I doubt that any drug company will want to study us.

So what should we do? Well for one thing our healthcare providers should know our history including all the meds that we are taking and have taken.

For adults the recommendation is,

There is insufficient evidence to guide recommendations for bone density testing in transgender women or men. Transgender people (regardless of birth-assigned sex) should begin bone density screening at age 65. Screening between ages 50 and 64 should be considered for those with established risk factors for osteoporosis. Transgender people (regardless of birth assigned sex) who have undergone gonadectomy and have a history of at least 5 years without hormone replacement should also be considered for bone density testing, regardless of age.

I am scheduled to a bone density test this spring for my 6 months endo check-up.

The only information that I found on trans children is from NPR,

The Endocrine Society’s guidelines suggest starting puberty blockers for transgender children when they hit a stage of development known as Tanner stage 2 — usually around 10 or 11 years old for a girl and 11 or 12 years old for a boy. The same guidelines suggest giving cross sex hormones — estrogen for transgender girls and testosterone for transgender boys — at age 16. However, doctors caution that estrogen and testosterone, the hormones that are blocked by these medications, also play a role in a child’s neurological development and bone growth.

“We do know that there is some decrease in bone density during treatment with pubertal suppression,” Finlayson said, adding that initial studies have shown that starting estrogen and testosterone can help regain the bone density. What Finlayson said there isn’t enough research on is whether someone who was on puberty blockers will regain all their bone strength, or if they might be at risk for osteoporosis in the future.

So what should we do?

I believe in informed consent, when discussing taking Cross Gender Hormones (CGH) or puberty blockers we should be aware of all the risks and have the necessary medical test done.