Clinical Advisory Network on Sex and Gender
Prompted by the MHRA decision to pause and review the PATHWAYS puberty blocker trial, CAN-SG wrote to the MHRA detailing concerns and providing further information regarding safety issues. The CAN-SG letter argues that the trial lacks a justified risk-benefit balance, posing ethical challenges.
We’re collecting signatures from clinicians for this open letter. Please add your name here: Sign the letter to Wes Streeting Mr Wes StreetingSecretary of State for Health and Social Care Copied to Dr Hilary Cass 3 December 2025 Dear Mr Streeting, We are writing as a group of clinicians, academics and researchers, many of whom […]
This was the central question that experts debated at a special CAN-SG webinar earlier this week (16th Sept) and their answer was a resounding ‘no’. They agreed that the government’s plan to run a clinical trial on children with gender distress to determine whether puberty blockers (PBs) are safe raises too many ethical and methodological problems […]
The webinar on September 16, 2025, focuses on the ethics and challenges of a clinical trial for puberty blockers in children referred to youth gender clinics. Experts will discuss ideas about alternative research methods that could better improve care for children and young people with gender related distress.