Last Updated on January 3, 2020
The United Kingdom’s grasp of gender theory will likely have real health consequences for both the transgendered population and those living with their biological gender.
Gender transitioning men, who identify as female, will be invited by the United Kingdom’s National Health Service to take tests for cervical cancer – despite not having a cervix.
Further, women who identify as male will not be offered routine anti-cancer check ups for their breasts and cervix.
Ironically, biological females who are transitioning to become men would be ineligible for these screenings, as they would be registered as male.
A study recently found that transgender men were at a higher risk of breast cancer in comparison to the general male population.
Another test that will be withheld from men identifying as women – as they would be registered as woman – is for a blood vessel defect called an abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA).
From the age of 65 and up, men are invited to attend an ultrasound scan to search for AAA.
AAAs are six times more common in older men than women.
If left untreated, AAA can lead to a fatal hemorrhage.
It is unclear why the the NHS is refusing this service to those who are biologically male, and could possibly die if left untreated.
According to The Sun:
The advice comes from a 24-page booklet published by Public Health England called “Information for trans people”.
The PHE booklet explains “who we invite for screening”.
Transpeople who register with their GP as their birth sex will be invited to screenings appropriate to that, but if they register as they gender they identify as they will not be.
If a transman, born female, registers as male he won’t be invited for routine breast screenings at 50, or cervical screening. However, if a transwoman registers as female they will be routinely invited for cervical screening.
Smear tests are believed to have reduced the number of deaths from cervical cancer in women by 75%
The NHS website sets certain parameters for women identifying as men who wish to obtain a smear test:
Trans men who have had a total hysterectomy to remove their cervix do not need cervical screening.
Trans men who still have a cervix should have cervical screening to help prevent cervical cancer.
Due to the lifestyle of trans men, the Cancer Network believed it places them at a higher risk of suffering from cancer:
Transgender people have extremely high rates of smoking, drinking and HIV, all increasing their risks for developing an array of cancers, including lung cancer, anal cancer and liver cancer.
This isn’t the first time something similar has happened.
The Canadian Cancer Society used a trans woman as a thumbnail for their cervical cancer page.
According to the Canadian Cancer Society website:
If you’re a trans woman, you may not have given much thought to Pap tests and cervical cancer. And if you haven’t, that makes a fair amount of sense. After all, in order to get cervical cancer, you need to have a cervix — that is, the organ that connects the vagina to the uterus.
If you’re a trans woman and have not had bottom surgery, you aren’t at risk for cervical cancer.
It is unclear what the opportunity cost of screening those who are not biologically women may be, when considering the limited resources of the NHS.
