The Child and Adolescent Gender Center (CAGC), a collaboration between UCSF and community organizations, offers comprehensive medical and psychological care, as well as advocacy and legal support, to gender non-conforming/transgender youth and adolescents. A central component of this program is the UCSF CAGC Clinic, housed in the Division of Pediatric Endocrinology.

Gender non-conforming/transgender youth and adolescents feel a strong conflict between their gender (inner sense of who they are) and their physical sex characteristics. The CAGC team believes that being transgender is a normal variation in gender identity. As of May, 2013, the American Psychiatric Association has replaced the term "gender identity disorder" with the term "gender dysphoria."

Medical treatment may include administration of gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonists (GnRH-A). These hormones can safely suppress puberty by blocking the production of the principal sex hormones: estrogen and testosterone. Fully reversible, this treatment gives young people time to achieve greater self-awareness of their gender identification. If and when appropriate, our experts may administer cross-gender sex hormones.

Our Team

Our clinic brings together experts from within and outside UCSF to provide comprehensive care and support to our patients. The team includes:

• Stephen M. Rosenthal, MD, pediatric endocrinologist, professor of pediatrics, medical director of the CAGC
• Stanley Vance, MD, adolescent medical specialist
• Mere Abrams, MSW, social worker
• Erica Anderson, PhD, psychologist
• Joel Baum, MS, director of education and training for Gender Spectrum, director of advocacy for the CAGC
• J. Jessie Rose Cohen, LCSW, social worker
• Diane Ehrensaft, PhD, developmental and clinical psychologist, mental health director of the CAGC
• Kristian Gambardella, clinical research coordinator and youth program manager of the CAGC
• Asaf Orr, Esq., attorney
• Meredith Russell, PNP, pediatric nurse practitioner