Gender affirming surgery: The future lies in data

Abstract

In 1957, a great plastic surgeon wrote on gender-affirming surgery, "The surgeon is concerned with the plastic provision of a functioning organ of reasonable form ... The ethical problem of thus directing gender must, in the first instance, rest with the philosopher."¹ Since then, the philosophers have spoken, and the verdict is out: gender-affirming surgery is shown to alleviate some or all of the stress associated with gender dysphoria.² The field of gender-affirming surgery has a rich history of progress, but the field lags due to a lack of high-quality research on surgical techniques and outcomes data.