Research
Hormonal
Testosterone therapy in transgender men is associated with virilization (deepening voice, increased muscle mass, cessation of menses) and is considered safe regarding cardiovascular and oncological disease in the short- to mid-term.
Testosterone therapy for transgender men causes virilization, including voice deepening (which is permanent), increased muscle mass, facial/body hair growth, and cessation of menses. It is considered safe for cardiovascular and cancer risk in the short to mid-term, though long-term data is still being gathered.
ModerateSupportsMEDIUM confidence
The Endocrine Society guidelines for transgender men include testosterone therapy for virilization with deepening of the voice, cessation of menses, and increases of muscle mass and facial and body hair. Owing to the lack of evidence, treatment of gender nonbinary people should be individualized... Testosterone treatment in transgender men is seen as safe regarding cardiovascular and oncological disease in the short- and mid-term, but long-term effects need to be elucidated.
Why this rating
Based on guidelines and limited long-term data; the paper explicitly states long-term effects need elucidation.
Source
Endocrinology of Transgender Medicine
Guy T’Sjoen et al. · Endocrine Reviews · 2018
DOI 10.1210/er.2018-00011
narrative_reviewCited 313×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- Gender-affirming hormone therapy significantly reduces mental health morbidity, including depression and anxiety, in transgender individuals.Good
- Transfeminine hormone therapy (estrogen + antiandrogens) induces feminizing physical changes including breast development, fat redistribution, and reduced body/facial hair, but does not significantly alter voice pitch.Good
- Transfeminine hormone therapy is associated with an increased risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE), particularly with oral ethinyl estradiol or conjugated equine estrogen, whereas transdermal estradiol may mitigate this risk.Moderate
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