Intersex adult seeks justice over irreversible childhood surgery
Health-e News Intersex adult seeks justice over irreversible childhood surgery More than 10 intersex adults have approached a South African support organisation since 2020 saying they underwent surgery or other irreversible medical interventions as children without their or their parents’ informed consent. One of them is 33-year old Lerato Sikhosana from Orange Farm, south of Johannesburg. She…
A South African intersex adult is seeking justice for irreversible childhood surgeries and medical interventions she claims she never consented to. Lerato Sikhosana, 33, was born with ambiguous genitalia at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in 1993. Her mother was informed that her daughter had a medical condition that needed correction but was never given a full explanation.
At birth, doctors told Sikhosana's mother that her baby was a boy. However, Sikhosana says she was unaware that she was intersex until she was 8 years old when she was given a female name and referred to a psychologist. She underwent several irreversible medical procedures as a child, including clitoral reduction and bilateral gonadectomy.
The medical records show that she was treated with hormones and underwent a delayed puberty. Sikhosana says she was psychologically traumatized and developed anxiety and loss of trust in healthcare. She feels like a "failed or incomplete project" and is currently unemployed and unable to afford private healthcare.
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