Understanding the Types, Costs, Benefits and Risks of Transgender Surgery Procedures

Medically reviewed by Paul Gonzales on March 25, 2024.

“Transgender surgery” is a commonly searched term that refers to gender-affirming procedures for trans, non-binary, and gender non-conforming patients. Specifically, these are procedures that alter a patient’s body to help them experience greater gender congruence and gender euphoria as a result. In this article, we discuss the different kinds of gender-affirming surgical procedures, their costs, benefits as well as risks. If you would like to undergo any of these procedures, you can schedule a free, virtual consultation with one of our board-certified surgeons today.

Types of “Transgender Surgery”

Research has demonstrated, per the World Professional Association for Transgender Health’s  (WPATH) Standards of Care (SOC) version 8, that gender-affirming surgical care is medically necessary for many trans, non-binary and gender non-conforming people. That is to say, not only binary trans people––those who identify as trans men or women–have and can benefit from the transformative effects of the surgeries outlined below.

Top Surgery: Chest Reconstruction

Chest reconstruction top surgery can utilize a variety of techniques through different incision types, liposuction, and nipple skin grafts to remove chest tissue and construct a flatter chest in alignment with the patient’s unique goals.

The double incision technique is the most commonly performed because of its ability to remove large ammounts of tissue and optimize chest flatness. The GCC (Gender Confirmation Center) offers the widest variety of top surgery insicion types of any gender-affirmative surgical center, such as, the keyhole, periareolar, buttonhole, fishmouth and more.

Additionally, patients can choose between having their nipples removed, positioned and resized through skin grafting, or preserved in their original form to decrease the risk of erotic sensation loss. 

Top Surgery: Aggressive Breast Reduction

For some patients interested in top surgery, achieving complete chest flatness is not their goal. For many non-binary and gender non-conforming patients, they would experience a greater sense of gender congruence with their bodies through a breast reduction. Generally speaking, the inverted-T incision technique can achieve this by allowing more volume and sensation to be maintained in the chest.

Top Surgery: Breast Augmentation

Breast augmentations in trans feminine and non-binary patients are most often accomplished through the use of silicone implants of varying sizes, depending on patient preference. Likewise, most trans patients have their breast implants placed through an inframammary incision, which conceals the scar at the bottom fold of the breast. You can learn about the other options available for breast augmentation surgery on this page.

Gender-Affirming Body Contouring

Body contouring encompasses a series of liposuction, fat grafting, skin excision and even implant procedures to align the shape of a patient’s body with their gender goals. Patients can undergo liposuction to remove “feminine” curves from their body, liposuction and/or fat grafting to give them the appearance of “feminine” curves or opt for silicone pectoral implants to enhance their top surgery results.

Facial Surgery

Facial Feminization Surgery (FFS) and Facial Masculinization Surgery (FMS) are umbrella terms for different kinds of surgical procedures that can be used to change the appearance of the face. Patients can choose to alter one or more of the following parts of the face:

• The position of the hairline
• The flatness or protrusion of the brow bone
• The size and shape of the nose
• The volume of the cheeks
• The size and shape of the lips
• The size and shape of the jaw
• The size and shape of the chin
• The size or appearance of the laryngeal prominence (“Adam’s Apple”)
• …and more

Bottom Surgery

Bottom surgery refers to a series of procedures that reconstruct a patient’s genitals to achieve gender euphoria, enable urination while standing and/or allow for different sexual functions (i.e., penetrative intercourse). 

A vaginal canal, clitoris and/or labia can be constructed through the following procedures: vaginoplasty, vulvoplasty and labiaplasty. If a patient would like to undergo a vaginoplasty that conserves their penis, a penile-preserving vaginoplasty can be performed. If a patient would like a vaginal canal, lifelong dilation after surgery will be necessary to maintain its functionality.

The testicles and scrotum can be removed through an orchiectomy and scrotectomy procedure. It’s important to note that scrotal tissue can be used to construct the labia and lining of vaginal walls. So, patients who are planning to undergo a vaginoplasty or vulvoplasty should consider waiting to remove their scrotum and undergo permanent hair removal of the skin for reconstruction purposes.