My path to performing gender-affirming surgery began when I was four years old, after I told my grandmother I wanted to become a physician. Looking back, I had a warm and caring pediatrician who made me feel safe and had an endless supply of orange lollipops. He ultimately became a powerful role model for the type of physician I aspired to be – smart, caring and capable.
In my senior year of high school, I was accepted into Yale under an early action program, but elected to attend Northwestern University, which offered an Honors Program in Medical Education, allowing me to enter medical school at age 20 after two years of college.
After medical school, as a surgery resident, I spent much of my first two years on plastic surgery services. I found myself gravitating toward reconstructive surgery on injured patients rather than solely cosmetic procedures. I finished training in urological surgery and wanted to become well-trained in reconstructive urology – to be able to fix traumatic genital injuries, repair devastating urinary incontinence and become an expert in urethral reconstruction. I was fortunate to become the first U.S. urologist to complete two separate year-long surgical fellowships in male (UCSF) and female (UCLA) genital reconstruction. I also became one of the inaugural surgeons to become board-certified in both Urology and Urogynecology and Reconstructive Pelvic Surgery (URPS).
I have always been my inclined to seek out and serve patient populations who are vulnerable and underserved. I practiced reconstructive and general urology in Los Angeles for 15 years, and over time, I began to see an increasing number of transgender patients in my practice. This experience made me more aware of their urgent need for capable and compassionate care, and I ultimately felt that my specialized training would enable me to help them.
About nine years ago, I visited a surgeon in Serbia to begin my expedition into transgender and non-binary surgery. I then sought out training and experience in a high-volume practice in San Francisco, where I have exclusively performed transgender and non-binary bottom surgery for over seven years. This period has undoubtedly been the most rewarding and fulfilling of my professional career.