Susan's Place Transgender Resources

Hi!
I have just recently finished my transition phase at the VUMC and i meet all the criteria to get SRS. But, i have been wondering if SRS is of good quality there. Would it be better to go to Thailand? This is once in a lifetime kind of thing for me, and im still young i dont want to live with regret for the rest of my life.. i'll really be suicidal if i am not pleased with my vagina, i just want it done right like everyone else.

It's impossible to find any photos of srs results from VUMC, but you can find quite a few from Thailand, plus plenty of posts about it. For me that means there's high risk at VUMC as you've no idea what you're getting. Thailand has much more certainty, you just have to decide if you like what they do.

By Thailand I mainly mean Suporn and Chettawut, there's much less information about the others.

Hi Samantha,

I think you hit the wrong forum with this question. I don't mean to imply that Susans is a bad place to ask such questions, but you might want to look up the forum on t-nederland. There are Dutch people who go abroad, like me (Chettawut, October 2017). However, you seldom hear international people coming to the Netherlands for their SRS. I think the reasons are rather simple and primarily driven by financial considerations. Most doctors in European countries practice the penile-inversion method, including the VUmc. This surgery is covered by insurance, which as far as I know at least applies to the Netherlands, France, the UK and Spain. Going abroad for surgery is therefore usually considered to be a luxury. Also, you might need to pay for (part of) the surgery yourself. I managed to get full compensation from my Dutch insurer, but I can assure you that it was not easy. Some of my friends still struggle with their insurers to get full compensation. Travel and living expenses are not reimbursed by the way, never. Keep this in mind when deciding to either go for the VUmc or to go abroad.

As for quality, that is a pretty subjective topic. I can assure you that I am very pleased with my results and would not think a second to got to the VUmc for this surgery. If you're interested, I wrote a rather detailed blog on t-nederland. I use the name TessB there as well, so its pretty easy to find. My main reasons to choose Chettawut were:
- the results he is able to achieve with his non-penile inversion technique (I saw the results of some friends);
- the quality of the aftercare (check-ups each day during your stay, instead of the five days in the hospital at the VUmc);
- the possibility to schedule the surgery when I wanted (instead of when the VUmc is able to);
- bad previous experiences with the VUmc (unreliable people...);
- bad reputation of the VUmc when it comes to dealing with complications (many patients need additional surgery to correct the aesthetic result);
- I simply like Asia.

You should decide for yourself whether its worth the effort for you to go abroad and whether you have the means to do it (especially as you have to pay the costs in advance before being reimbursed - think of approximately 11.000-16.000 EUR depending on your choice of surgeon). I admit I am a rather biased person, which is OK, but you should try to talk to some people who went to the VUmc as well and make an informed and reasoned decision. You go abroad because you want it yourself, not because of someone like me tells you that you should. Again, t-nederland might be a better place to ask such questions (and read my blog with more details on what to expect from Chettawut).

Good luck on making your decision!

Hi Samantha,

I'm currently scheduling an SRS consult at the VUMC as I nearly finished the transition phase there.
But not sure wheater I will have my surgery there.
I know from the surgeons that they can show you photo results at the consult.
Sadly enough even in the Dutch community, there is not much information about the SRS results at the VUMC publicly available.

For the techniques at the moment the VUmc uses quite some old techniques:
They use a classic penile inversion technique with a depth of 10-12 cm.
If needed they will use a skin graft or in some cases the colon to create the depth.

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Quote from: Stella92 on February 12, 2018, 06:29:30 AM
Hi Samantha,

I'm currently scheduling an SRS consult at the VUMC as I nearly finished the transition phase there.
But not sure wheater I will have my surgery there.
I know from the surgeons that they can show you photo results at the consult.
Sadly enough even in the Dutch community, there is not much information about the SRS results at the VUMC publicly available.

For the techniques at the moment the VUmc uses quite some old techniques:
They use a classic penile inversion technique with a depth of 10-12 cm.
If needed they will use a skin graft or in some cases the colon to create the depth.

I know right, its such a shame because the VUMC is one of the biggest transgender healthcare institutions, but theres little to no information of SRS publicly available or online, despite them doing this for decades!

P:S Thanks TessB for responding, I'll look up T-nederland.

Quote from: Stella92 on February 12, 2018, 06:29:30 AM
Sadly enough even in the Dutch community, there is not much information about the SRS results at the VUMC publicly available.

The community itself can be very supportive, if you ask. The thing is that nobody feels a need to share any information without being asked. Everyone just flocks to the VUmc or UMCG because it is the "easiest" option available. Complications are rarely, if ever, subject of discussion, despite the high frequency with which they occur. However, if you mention it in the presence of some post-operative folks, you will likely get some (nasty) stories. Coming to think of it, I do not really know anyone who went to the VUmc and did not end up having to undergo a secondary/corrective surgery. In contrast, neither me nor the people I met in Thailand nor my friends who went to the same surgeon had any serious complications.

Quote from: Stella92 on February 12, 2018, 06:29:30 AM
For the techniques at the moment the VUmc uses quite some old techniques:
They use a classic penile inversion technique with a depth of 10-12 cm.
If needed they will use a skin graft or in some cases the colon to create the depth.

10-12 cm? Seriously? Chettawut tries to give you at least 6 inch (15 cm) and Suporn even more. If depth is important to you, you should really consider going abroad. However, you might want to keep your eyes and ears open. Rumour has it that dr. Kanhai is getting back in the game. If I had done my surgery in the Netherlands, I would definitely have gone to him.

Listen to TessB!

Depth MATTERS! I went from 7.5 (around 18cm) inches in depth down to barely 5 (around 12) and it has affected my sex life. You cannot perform adequately in my opinion. I can't even take average sized men all the way anymore, and I have never had issues before. I am now looking to have a colom srs done.

Quote from: IsabellaSwan on February 12, 2018, 08:20:21 PM
Depth MATTERS! I went from 7.5 (around 18cm) inches in depth down to barely 5 (around 12) and it has affected my sex life. You cannot perform adequately in my opinion. I can't even take average sized men all the way anymore, and I have never had issues before. I am now looking to have a colom srs done.

Isn't 5" fairly average for SRS?

Girl if it is trans women everywhere are being cheated.

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