Surgeon pioneers gender reassignment surgery

Sarah Brown Life Editor

While in medical school, Toby Meltzer did not plan to perform gender reassignment surgeries. He spent most of his early years as a plastic surgeon, reattaching hands and doing other microsurgery work; but, something was missing. When he agreed to begin receiving requests to do gender reassignment surgeries (GRS), he immediately noticed a difference in his work.

“Previously, my patients came to me in terrible condition after something like a car accident, and after I had literally put the pieces of their face back together, all they could focus on was the way they used to look, and would complain about the little scar they had right above their lip,” said Dr. Meltzer. “GRS patients are always extremely grateful that someone is finally helping them, and it is refreshing to feel so appreciated in my work.”

Meltzer, father of Ryan Meltzer ’07, spoke at Rockefeller Hall on Saturday, Nov. 5 about his pioneer work in the field of GRS. The event, sponsored by Blegen House, the center for the Study of Social Change staffed by people from the Lesbian, Gay, Bi, Trans and Queer communities at Vassar, included a talk followed by a complementary dinner at Blegen House, intended to foster further discussion.

After explaining the history of GRS, Meltzer debunked several myths about being transsexual. He stressed that trans people are proven to be biologically different than others of their assigned gender, and that upbringing does not create their feelings of gender dysphoria. He also said that being transsexual has nothing to do with having the ability to have intercourse and that trans people simply want their appearance to coincide with their gender identity.

Unlike many other plastic surgeries, GRS requires a team of several professionals and patients who will undergo a lengthy process, which adheres to the Harry Benjamin International Gender Dysphoria Association’s standards for GRS and ancillary procedures. Patients must see a psychologist or psychiatrist, an endocrinologist and a social worker in addition to their work with Meltzer. They must also spend one year in therapy, receive medically-supervised hormone therapy, and spend one year in a “real-life test,” passing as the other gender. Meltzer can only perform surgeries once patients have passed this “test” and have obtained a letter from a psychiatrist saying that they are veritably prepared for the operation.

Meltzer has pioneered many of the surgical techniques that he uses. One technique that he designed, called a “vaginoplasty,” was groundbreaking because it preserved the important ability to experience pleasurable sensation in those transitioning from male to female. “I was the first person in the United States to make a clitoris with feeling,” reported Meltzer.

As a result of his excellent reputation in the trans community Meltzer has the largest GRS practice in the country, and has worked with hundreds of patients. But, he was quick to point out, you most likely wouldn’t recognize his patients if you saw them on the street. This is, of course, the goal of his work.

“My patients are not simply [getting surgery] to be sensational,” Meltzer said. “They really do want to complete this part of their life and move on.”