NHS confirms £10m funding for puberty blockers trial

The clinical research delivery arm of the NHS has confirmed it is set to fund a trial into the potential benefits of puberty blockers for trans adolescents.

The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) said that more than £10 million ($12.8 million) would be put into an trial, led by a team of researchers at King’s College London, to analyse several areas of gender care for under-18s.

The trial comes as part of the recommendations in the controversial Cass Report which was published last year.

Under the trial, young people are expected to be given puberty-suppressing hormones for just over two years, with consent from their parents or guardians. Researchers will then study and analyse their physical, social and emotional well-being.

One of the researchers for the Cass Review said the study would “fill some of the gaps in our knowledge about the outcomes of different interventions and address some of the uncertainty about the impacts and efficacy of puberty-suppressing hormones”.

Professor James Palmer, NHS England’s medical director for specialises services, said the research would “examine the evidence for a range of clinical care,” which included puberty blockers.

“Independent researchers led by King’s College London will now progress this joint NHS and NIHR project, which will be subject to strict ethical and regulatory approval and follow stringent safeguards in scientific research,” he added.

“In the meantime, the NHS continues to expand and improve services for children and young people with gender dysphoria and incongruence, in line with recommendations from the Cass Review.”

Puberty blockers were banned in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland following the publication of Dr Hilary Cass’ report.

The ban on private prescriptions, which was initially approved by Conservative health secretary Victoria Atkins, was enacted shortly after NHS governing bodies stopped prescribing the medication. It was extended indefinitely by Wes Streeting after Labour won the general election.

Streeting, who has previously said he no longer believes that trans women are women, extended the ban after citing the “complexity” of issues cited by Dr Cass.

However, several charities and medical organisations have criticised the report, with trans charity TransActual arguing there was no evidence within or outside the review that could be used as justification for the ban.

In a pre-action letter on its intent to make a legal challenge, TransActual’s lawyers claimed the government “acted unfairly and unlawfully in failing to consult appropriate groups or individuals” over the ban.

Share your thoughts! Let us know in the comments below, and remember to keep the conversation respectful.