Cancer support for trans and gender diverse people

While there are affirming health providers (see Transhub Doctor list, Victorian Inclusive Practitioners or AusPATH practitioners), trans and gender diverse (trans) people often face extra challenges accessing care that consistently refers to us in the right ways and gives us relevant choices for our bodies.

We know some trans people:

• won’t have a choice about being out to health providers during treatment
• don’t use or don’t plan on using gender-affirming hormones or want surgical intervention(s) to affirm their gender, while others do.

Some cancer treatments might be gender affirming – for example, getting a mastectomy or top surgery for breast/chest cancer. Even with gender-affirming changes, you might experience grief alongside gender euphoria. You might not be able to access gender-affirming treatment options because of the kind of cancer you have, the type of surgery you need or due to a lack of services.