Former phalloplasty patient of Dr. Curtis Crane speaks out

In response to our most recent article about Dr. Curtis Crane, we have been contacted by one of Crane’s former patients, who asked us to share this video.

Be aware that the video contains graphic images and video footage pertaining to the phalloplasty surgery and complications experienced by this person.

We thank this former patient for reaching out to us, and for having the courage to speak out.

34 thoughts on “Former phalloplasty patient of Dr. Curtis Crane speaks out

  1. I find it a bit odd that this person is still not apparently questioning the desire to “transition “ despite all the trauma this unnecessary surgery brings. Also that her medical records actually said MALE!! Anyone who wants a phalloplasty ( other than a horribly injured man) will be female and this is so important in medical care.

    • Without asking this very brave person directly, you actually have no idea how they feel about transition, their biological sex, or anything else. The video is about the harms and complications of phalloplasty, not their views or opinions on related matters. This former patient is doing a real service in trying to help others by warning about possible hazards of this surgery, no matter who they are.

    • I second what the person below said. We are not talking about records or marking female or male, we are speaking about the horrible medical treatment of a Dr, Dr Curtis Crane. Your innuendo about calling Blair a female is cruel. Look inside yourself, Blair you have the courage of a lion, your parents should be proud of who they raised. Good on ya.

      • Facts aren’t cruel though. As a scientist, let me kindly inform you that adult humans can’t actually change sex. They can change their appearance only. Sorry.

    • I noticed that too. Moderator, we are replying not only to the content of the video, but to the glaring omission. Yes, she is very brave to share, inform, help others. These surgeries are unethical, IMO.

    • Alison, I know you intentionally said, “her!” Are you trying to help or just prove a point? Is it about winning or helping? You might want to ask yourself this before you say anything else.

      Alison, this “person,” does that comfort you enough has balls of steel and it doesn’t matter how this “person,” came to have these balls. The backlash that Blair is receiving from the right wing Christian community is just the start, he is also getting it twice as bad from his own transgender community and this video is still up. He is standing up to the people that accept him the most to help other people, he is leaving his comfort zone to help people that don’t even know they need to be helped. We have 18, 19 year old kids that want this surgery and have no idea the brutality of it. If you knew the courage it takes to do this I would hope the feeling you would be feeling is shame for a comment or slip of the tongue that was trying to prove a point. FYI Alison, we get it as transgender people we get it, no need to rub noises in the fact that we don’t fit perfectly into society.

      Who gives a rats A** what his medical records say, am I in the twilight zone. This guy is trying to save kids.

      Man, we are not all born black and white, I know that makes the people that fit in the boxes feel more comfortable, but it’s not reality.

      Blair, you are my hero. Blair, you are saving lives and who gives a sh** what he, she feels about the decision to transition, this was not the point Alison.

      Yes, kids should not be legally allowed to take hormones or hormone blocker, yes it should be illegal to mutilate kids bodies before they even decide what their favorite colors are. But, don’t poke the one of very few transgender people that understand that and are trying to save lives.

  2. Thank you for sharing your story. That took courage. I’m about ten minutes in, and wow–I am pretty desensitized to frightening images, but these got me cringing. Going through that must have been awful.

  3. Usually when you have a problem with post operative care and your surgeon isn’t responsive, you have the option to talk to a different surgeon in the same field. Since so few surgeons perform phalloplasty, it isn’t really an option for these patients. They are likely not warned of that issue, either.

    What really struck me (in this vid and reading the lawsuits) was how horribly crane and his team responded to obvious surgical problems. It seems like they were annoyed with the complications arising in the patients, rather than concerned. These are the kinds of problems that require immediate follow up regardless of the surgery type or site, and they seemed to just want the problems to go away. I can understand how bad it must feel to have failed the patients, but the medical duty of caring for them is supposed to be more important than how good the surgeon feels about themselves.

    Dr crane moved to a place where the malpractice laws have a very low cap on damages. Attorneys will advise patients that it isn’t worth it to sue, and they are going to make more videos like this because they won’t have a lot to lose. He is running from the obvious: these surgeries are much riskier than previously thought, and should be performed less often than they are right now.

  4. This is heartbreaking and disturbing to women like me who are primarily attracted to naturally masculine women. When I see these stories, there’s always a moment where I want to say “before you cut into your body know there is a lid for every pot and someone out there who will love you as is.” From wanting to pee standing up to penetration to discomfort in stereotypical women’s clothes, many of us have learned to resolve these feeling without surgery. And many of us who love women who have these intrinsic desires have an ability to navigate such feelings/energies with validation & reciprocal desire.

    This person is incredibly brave on multiple levels to share this. To disclose publicly becoming, in essence, chronically ill for a dream that can never be fully rectified, takes guts. This disclosure may not only save some women pain, time, money, and stress, but lives. Thank you and please don’t ever give up on living a fulfilling life, no matter what!

    • Walua, I believe this is a voice (your voice) that is truly needed within the lesbian community. I read on here the other day that males and females come in all varying forms of masculinity and femininity and for some reason hit hit me right between the eyes. This needs to be taught to our kids as well as the option to transition when they have fully formed brains.

      The interesting twist on transitioning from FTM is that you go from a lesbian to looking like a man that most people think are gay. It’s like you can’t get away from the gay community. I mean that last comment lightly and with humor. The characteristics that you pick up living as a woman don’t automatically leave once the hormones make you look male, they are their in your conscience and you go from one problem to another.

      For some, transitioning is the only way to feel whole and I believe in transgender people. But, I believe it is a much much much smaller portion of society that is currently transitioning.

  5. More power t you for posting this….and sorry that the docs were not more honest, let alone that the cult of personality/the brigade, has protected the medical misdeeds of that cretin.

    There is nothing to be ashamed of in this. No different than the reality of the MTF/MTT surgery, it’s becoming apparent that there is an inordinate amount of cutting, rerouting and polysyllabic chemical usage damage done, in the name of creating something that….may not even work as advertised. Worse still….one has to wonder if it is worth spending all that time and money after [even if the corrective upon corrective surgeries are covered by insurance] when, to be honest….all that time could have been spent on so much more in life, that is not centered on ‘gee I have had this op, I am so brave, look at me…..I am a god’ etc.

    Again, more power to you for being honest.

  6. Had you been fully informed, (as you should have been) would you still have gone ahead with the surgery?
    Were you offered well qualified in-depth counselling to try and accept your body ‘as was’ before going down the surgical route?
    Thank you for sharing xx

    • I had it as well as Blair and I can answer for myself…NOT IN A MILLION years. That’s why we both are speaking out, someone has to do it and Blair has a heart and will of a Lyon.

  7. So sorry you have had to endure such suffering, but also so glad you have an amazing amazing partner because you are definitely an amazing amazing heroic person. Thank you for sharing the reality of what has happened to you.

  8. Identity confusion, disillusion is so great, that those suffering from it grasp at any hope that is reached out to them,,,even if there is no science or logic that supports these treatments. The hope of feeling complete, drives us toward untenable solutions and lifestyles that no sane person would grasp at.

    She still, intentionally presents as a man, and her voice is typical of females on massive doses of T.

    But, I don’t hear this woman connect the failed procedure with her choice to live as a man. Only that this particular doctor and procedure failed to produce the results she desired.

    If her phallus surgery was successful, I am certain she, like so many other young women, would produce an equally happy and uplifting video about the benefits of all her surgeries, which would only go on to encourage thousands of other young girls to follow in her foot steps.

    Last year around 400,000 patients under doctor’s care died from their treatments and medical malpractice. These were not rare, found only in South American jungle types of disease, but normal, everyday, well known , researched, and routinely treated illnesses, injuries, and disease.

    Yet, SRS and all of its related treatments are medical experimentation worthy of Dr. Mengele. The gender affirming doctors prey on emotionally vulnerable, needy, and desperate people. And when someone like this woman suffers such hideous complications from them and is not willing to connect the procedure to the cure they are offering, or her choice to cross live, it is more the pity.

    • Rene, a suggestion: Perhaps the person who made this video would be more open to hearing your message if you revealed your own long history of cross-sex identification, which included SRS? Also, you are making a lot of assumptions about how this person feels about transition; you really can’t know what this former patient thinks about anything else without asking directly. The focus of the video is phalloplasty harms, and the desire to help other people be prepared for the terrible complications that might occur, should they choose it. To show one’s face on the Internet and speak this openly takes guts.

      • Without sounding too wishy washy I agree with both you and Rene. This young person is remarkable and resilent. Has been through hell and survived yet not without some serious physical and emotional damage. Sex life will probably be forever damaged but I hope not. The truth is people cannot change their sex. They can take hormones and have plastic surgery but sadly good people are damaged. Affirmation and surgery should not be anywhere near a first response. Identity issues or gender dysphoria needs to be properly addressed through therapy and people can maybe remain healthy in their own sex. I hope that will be done first in the future.

      • If she connects the dots between this failed surgery and her desire to present as male, she certainly doesn’t reveal that anywhere in the video. She does appear to be on T. Yes, she is courageous to share.

    • Hi, Rene! Good to see you here. I´ve seen so many videos of you I think of you as a friend from abroad. Could we translate and legend a video of you? We are a Brazilian campaing against transing kids. Thank you so much, all my loving.

  9. I’m sending so much love to this person, sounds like a stressful, scary reeeally awful experience. The leech thing is wild! I thought it was medieval shit too. 🙁

    Anyway if you’re reading this, I think you are so brave in sharing this. Thank you for doing so.

  10. This video is not about ideology or debating the person’s gender identity. This is a person who has undergone tremendous suffering and did a truly courageous and terrifying thing by uploading this vulnerable video.

    “The Struggle,” if you’re watching this, I’m really touched by your willingness to share your story with all it’s intensity. The fact that others can find out the reality of possible outcomes of this surgery may be life-changing. It’s clear that your surgeon and their clinic was neglectful of your care before, during and after.

    I’m so sorry and I wish you healing and recovery.

  11. I don’t understand why the surgeon claimed he has to do surgery to allow bio males to pee sitting down: a male relative had a stroke, and I know for a fact that many of the men in his ward sat down to pee – no surgery needed. (Some of the men used to discuss the fact that they wanted to be able to pee standing up, but couldn’t because of mobility issues.)

  12. Dear Struggler <3 You are such a brave and resiliant human being. I know everything will go fine for you and you will be able to achieve many goals. All my loving from Brasil. I wish we could translate and legend your video…may we?

  13. Thank you for your bravery in sharing your story. I am sorry for all you have been through. You deserved better medical care and more better warning of the risks. Thanks for informing all of us. Wishing you continued love and support from those close to you as you continue to heal.

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  16. Thank you for sharing your story. It is a valuable experience that needs to be made know to a wide audience. You are valuable and your story is valuable. I am sorry that you have paid such a high price to get to this point. I hope and pray that you will experience full healing.

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