User:Valereee/ Clinical Advisory Network on Sex and Gender

The Clinical Advisory Network on Sex and Gender (CAN-SG) is a UK and Ireland-based advocacy group that opposes the use of hormone blockers for treatment of gender dysphoria in adolescents.

History
In 2010 the UK Council for Psychotherapy published an analysis of conversion therapy which in 2015 became the Memorandum of Understanding on Conversion Therapy (MOU) in the United Kingdom and eventually was signed by multiple medical organizations, including British Psychological Society, the Royal College of General Practitioners, the National Health Service, and NHS Scotland.

CAN-SG was formed in reaction to the 2017 revision, which included gender identity in its definition of conversion therapy. This caused a schism among those who, while opposing conversion therapy for same-sex attraction, believed gender-affirming treatments could be harmful and that gender-identity conversion therapy was a separate issue. CAN-SG and Thoughtful Therapists, both organizations critical of gender-affirming therapies, grew out of the schism.

Stance and advocacy
The group's stated aims are to "Enhance professional and public understanding of the nature of sex, gender, gender roles and identity, with respect to medicine and healthcare, Improve knowledge about the causes, consequences and treatments of gender dysphoria, drawing on best evidence, (and) Promote free and respectful discourse on sex, gender and gender identity between healthcare professionals".

According to TransLucent, a UK advocacy group for trans rights, CAN-SG is "relentlessly hostile" to gender-affirming therapies.

Conference
The group planned a "First Do No Harm" conference for March of 2024 at the Royal College of General Practitioners' (RCGP) headquarters, a space that is also a private events venue run by an events company. The planned conference drew opposition from the RCGP's Pride group, who issued a statement saying "This meeting might give an air of credibility and face validity, but it is the accidental endorsement by the RCGP, which will do the most damage."

The RGCP initially announced CAN-SG could not hold their event in the space, but facing criticism that they were trying to "close down debate" on medical issue, allowed the conference to continue. On February 14 of 2024, the RCGP issued a statement saying they had asked CAN-SG to remove all references to the RCGP from the conference's marketing materials and said "we understand that any association with the event, even inadvertently, has called the College’s commitment to inclusion and to the care of our LGBTQ+ members and patients into question".

Leadership

 * Louise Irvine, co-chair
 * Stella O'Malley, clinical advisor