According to the Evening Standard, gender-affirming hormone treatment for 16 and 17-year-olds has been paused after an NHS review found evidence does not support its continued use. The treatment, which involves prescribing masculinising or feminising hormones, has been available on the NHS for 16 and 17-year-olds with a diagnosis of gender dysphoria but is being paused from Monday. New referrals for the treatment have been paused from Monday.
A review by NHS England has found that the evidence is too weak to show whether such treatment is either beneficial or harmful to children with gender dysphoria. The NHS is continuing to examine evidence for masculinising and feminising hormones for adults, though what specific evidence is being examined and when those findings will be released remains unclear. NHS England said 16 and 17-year-old patients currently receiving cross-sex hormones can continue to receive treatment but it must be reviewed individually with clinicians.
Following the Cass Review, NHS England commissioned an in-depth review of all available clinical evidence for using oestrogen or testosterone either alone or with other medications to treat gender incongruence and dysphoria.
The exact number of 16 and 17-year-olds currently receiving hormone treatment on the NHS is not known. NHS England is launching a 90-day consultation on plans for the NHS to remove the treatment as a routine procedure. The treatment will be paused throughout the consultation period and while NHS England reviews the expected thousands of responses before reaching a final decision.
The timeline for that final decision after the consultation has not been specified. ' The pause on hormone treatment for adolescents comes amid broader scrutiny of gender-related medical interventions for young people. ' The specific details of those concerns have not been publicly detailed.
This review has established that the available evidence does not support the continued use of masculinising or feminising hormones to treat gender incongruence or dysphoria for young people under 18.
Use of the drugs to delay or prevent puberty happening was banned for under-18s in 2024. Taking such hormones can cause irreversible changes, such as breast development when taking oestrogen, or deepening of the voice caused by taking testosterone. What specific criteria were previously required for 16 and 17-year-olds to receive hormone treatment on the NHS has not been disclosed in the announcement.
The consultation period represents a significant shift in how the NHS approaches gender-affirming care for adolescents while evidence is further examined.