12-year-old transgender born a girl vows to fight doctor's decision to ban him having hormone jabs to halt puberty

Leo Waddell, 12, from Lowestoft, Suffolk, was born as a girl called Lily



He has lived as a boy since age of five

At 16, he wants to take testosterone and then have surgery at 18

First, he wants blockers to prevent release of female hormones in puberty

His GP has refused to prescribe them as she's unsure of long-term effects

Leo's mother said it's 'more dangerous' for him not have hormone blockers

They will keep visiting GPs until one will prescribe the medication

A mother has vowed to help her transgender child get the treatment he needs after he has been refused a prescription for hormone blockers.

Leo Waddell, 12, from Lowestoft, Suffolk, was born as a girl called Lily but has lived as a boy since the age of five.

At the age of 16, he intends to start taking testosterone and then have gender reassignment surgery at the age of 18.

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Unhappy: Leo and his mother Hayley appeared on This Morning to share their anguish at him being refused a prescription for hormone blockers

In the meantime, he wants to have hormone blockers to prevent the onset of puberty and the release of female hormones in his body. But his GP has refused to prescribe them because she is unsure of the long-term effects.



Leo appeared on This Morning today with this mother, Hayley, 48, to talk about how upset he is about the decision.

'I didn't like it, I started to cry when she told me,' he said.

He was born as a girl called Lily, right, but Leo has known he wants to live as a boy from the age of five

Presenter Phillip Schofield read a statement from Leo's GP that explained her decision.

It read: ' I have no previous experience of administering this specialist medication to young people. I have already sought advice from my prescribing authority.



'Any clinical decision I make always gives consideration to every aspect of the patient's wellbeing. My priority is always infused with the welfare of the patient.'



'What so many people don't understand is that I feel it's far more dangerous for Leo to not have these hormone blockers '

Hayley said she understood the doctor's position but as far as she is concerned, it is far better for Leo to have the blockers than not.

She said: ' He had all the tests and everything that said he's fine to have the hormone blockers but it's down to the GP to prescribe them. She's not happy enough, she doesn't know enough about the long term effects. But this is research.'

She added: 'What so many people don't understand is that I feel it's far more dangerous for Leo to not have these hormone blockers. The things he has to go though, the emotions and the torment is slowly bringing him down and down.'

Explanation: Phillip Schofield read a statement from Leo's GP in which she said she said she had 'no previous experience of administering this specialist medication to young people'

Leo gave an insight into his torment when he appeared on This Morning earlier this year. He said then that he would 'probably kill myself' if had to live as a girl.

Hayley, a hairdresser who also has three daughters, rejected the idea that Leo shouldn't have the hormone blockers in case he later regrets his decision.

She said: 'I think many people think that, maybe I did for some time in the early days but that isn't going to happen, I know that 100 per cent, Leo needs the blockers.'

Hayley and Leo believe his teenage years will be much easier if he has the hormone blockers before he is then able to take testosterone.

Not giving up: Hayley said they wiil keep visiting GPs until they find one who will prescribe the medication

She said: ' We know someone grown up who has been through it who said he would have preferred never to have female hormones in his body before he started on the testosterone.'

The mother added that they will not give up and will keep trying to get the medication prescribed.

'All we can do is go around all the GPs and find someone who is sympathetic to trans children and is prepared to prescribe,' she said.

Leo is one of Britain's youngest people with gender dysphoria, a condition whereby you feel have been physically assigned the wrong gender at birth.

He and his family are being supported by a specialist clinic for young people with gender identity issues at the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust i n London.



The trust announced in 2011 that their Gender Identity Development Service would work with University College London's Institute of Child Health on a research study looking at the effects of blocking sex hormones in early puberty in a carefully selected group of adolescents with Gender Identity Disorder.