One Transgender Man’s Story of Getting Breast Cancer
Casey’s recovery
After receiving 8 rounds of chemotherapy, 3 surgeries, and 4 weeks worth of radiation therapy, Sexton is in recovery. He started taking a type of medication known as tamoxifen, which is responsible for blocking estrogen in order to prevent breast cancer recurrence. Yet, Sexton began experiencing menopausal hot flashes – symptoms that his testosterone treatments had blocked beforehand. Sexton knew that continuing with testosterone treatments could increase his risk of breast cancer recurrence; however, stopping treatments would also make it harder for him to live as a man.
After discussing the pros and cons with his doctor, Dr. Burkard, the two decided that he would continue receiving testosterone treatments. “I thought it was a reasonable and fairly safe, but not absolutely safe, decision” Dr. Burkard said.
