1st Gender Affirmation Surgery For Transgender Woman Performed At RWJ Hospital Somerset

SOMERVILLE, NJ — Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) Somerset recently performed its first gender affirmation surgery for a transgender woman making it one of only two hospitals in New Jersey and one of only a handful in the Northeast to perform "bottom surgery."

The six-hour procedure involves the use of the daVinci robotic surgical system and often includes an orchiectomy, penectomy (removal of the testicles and penis), creation of a new urethra, feminizing genitoplasty and creation of a vaginal canal.

"We were proud to lead the way in New Jersey as the first in the state to provide specialized primary care services for the LGBTQ+ community at our Babs Siperstein PROUD Center," said Tony Cava, president and chief executive officer of Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Somerset. "With the addition of gender affirmation surgery, we can now offer the full scope of LGBTQ+ medical care, from HIV prevention and wellness checkups to hormone therapy, behavioral health services and surgery."

Plastic surgeon Jonathan Keith and urologist and robotic surgeon Nitin Patel are performing the gender affirmation surgeries at the hospital. The pair have collaborated on nearly 100 procedures since performing their first gender affirmation surgery – a radial artery-based forearm phalloplasty – at Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston in 2018.

Their partnership is unique because in most cases, gender affirmation surgeries are performed by either a plastic surgeon or a urologist, not both, and may require multiple staged procedures.

"Patients benefit from our experience and our multidisciplinary approach because gender affirmation surgery is a very complex surgical procedure," said Dr. Patel. "The use of the daVinci robotic surgical system allows us to be more precise and accurate and requires smaller incisions, reducing the risk of complications and resulting in better patient outcomes."

Candidates for gender affirmation surgery must be at least 18 years old; have undergone one year of hormone therapy; have identified as their gender for at least one year and have a psychiatric evaluation to confirm their gender identity. The surgery is covered by most major medical insurances.

"It is so rewarding for me to be able to help patients be their authentic selves," said Dr. Keith.

To schedule an appointment at the Babs Siperstein PROUD Center, call 908-243-8647. For more information, visit www.rwjbh.org/somersetproud.

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