Hello and Happy Holidays to everyone!
After three battles with my insurance to get my top surgery covered and failing at each, I'm finally at the last straw and prepared to look for doctors in the Washington, DC area, close to home. I have DC Medicaid (and BlueCross BlueShield/Carefirst but my parent's employer has an exclusion on Gender Affirming Surgeries hence the insurance battles) and I know that most DC surgeons accept it, so it's really a matter of finding a good surgeon here. Unfortunately that task is almost impossible because many of the names I've been given either don't have any websites, pictures on TransBucket, and I can't find any reviews of their work online. Typically this would be a red flag to me, but I also know that it's not always a super negative thing.
Anyway, my question was if anyone had heard of any good surgeons in the Washington, DC area that perform top surgery? And if so, if they knew if these surgeons took insurance? I'm scheduling consultations and I recently visited Dr. Chukwuemeka Onyewu at Jamachi who claims to have completed hundreds of mastectomies (but on cancer patients or female-identified people that aren't seeking a masculine chest) and I'm rather worried that he might not be the right choice. But then again, how much damage can be done? I'm starting to get desperate.
If anyone has any experience or resources or information of any kind, I'd appreciate it. Thank you and happy holidays.
Thanks,
Miles
The most renowned resource in the DC area is Whitman Walker clinic. They do not do any surgery but they may know surgeons in the area. More information here: http://www.whitman-walker.org
I have done some research in the same area but I have not found anyone yet specialized in trans* surgery. Looking for a specialist in mastectomy might be a good alternative. I hope you can find someone able to help you!
Your first stop should really be your insurance to see who they have in network. No use getting a lot of options that you can't pursue because insurance won't pay.
I live in the DC area. I chose to have surgery with Dr. Beverly Fischer in Baltimore. I also consulted with Dr. Navin Singh in Chevy Chase and Dr. John Zinsser in Richmond. All three are decent "local" options with lots of FTM experience. Dr. Fischer was just the best fit for me.
Fischer, Singh, Zinsser and Stanwix are the only 4 I could find when I was looking for surgeons. Like Max, I went with Dr. Fischer because she had more experience and better education/knowledge of the surgery. I think they also offer an option with doing things in small payments as well (forgot what it's called). The other plus side to Fischer is she has a notary on site so that if you have a lot of things you need a notary for (birth certificate, drivers license, name change) you can have her sign off there. Overall my experience with her was really awesome and I am pretty pleased with my results.
The other three surgeons I couldn't find pictures of their DI work at the time. I do see some now but they don't look all that great to be honest (no offense to anyone who has had surgery with them). It seems like they also do more Peri surgery than DI but again I don't think it looks that great either.
I have a friend who goes through Whitman Walker and I think he got the info from them but I'm not 100% sure, but he went to Bluebond-Langner for his top surgery and is very happy with his results. She's in Baltimore I believe.
Quote from: CursedFireDean on December 27, 2016, 10:06:32 AM
I have a friend who goes through Whitman Walker and I think he got the info from them but I'm not 100% sure, but he went to Bluebond-Langner for his top surgery and is very happy with his results. She's in Baltimore I believe.
She will be in Baltimore for 4 more days. Up to NYU after that.
Quote from: sarah1972 on December 25, 2016, 08:04:46 PM
The most renowned resource in the DC area is Whitman Walker clinic. They do not do any surgery but they may know surgeons in the area. More information here: http://www.whitman-walker.org
I have done some research in the same area but I have not found anyone yet specialized in trans* surgery. Looking for a specialist in mastectomy might be a good alternative. I hope you can find someone able to help you!
I actually go there for therapy! My therapist gave me a lot of different surgeon's names that are in-network that are in DC. I think you're right about looking at a mastectomy specialist, I haven't written off Dr. Onyewu quite yet. Thank you!!! Also, happy holidays
Quote from: FTMax on December 25, 2016, 08:26:56 PM
Your first stop should really be your insurance to see who they have in network. No use getting a lot of options that you can't pursue because insurance won't pay.
I live in the DC area. I chose to have surgery with Dr. Beverly Fischer in Baltimore. I also consulted with Dr. Navin Singh in Chevy Chase and Dr. John Zinsser in Richmond. All three are decent "local" options with lots of FTM experience. Dr. Fischer was just the best fit for me.
My therapist and I have done a little research on who is in-network and many of the doctors in DC specifically that are in-network are completely unheard of, hence this post. I had a consultation with Dr. Fischer (she's absolutely amazing and her team was so nice), but she only accepted my BCBS which has an exclusion on the policy. I really liked her work though. Dr. Singh doesn't accept insurance so he's out of range, and I've never heard of Zinsser, so I'll definitely check him out, thank you for the new resource! I appreciate it.
Quote from: RaptorChops on December 26, 2016, 11:16:48 AM
Fischer, Singh, Zinsser and Stanwix are the only 4 I could find when I was looking for surgeons. Like Max, I went with Dr. Fischer because she had more experience and better education/knowledge of the surgery. I think they also offer an option with doing things in small payments as well (forgot what it's called). The other plus side to Fischer is she has a notary on site so that if you have a lot of things you need a notary for (birth certificate, drivers license, name change) you can have her sign off there. Overall my experience with her was really awesome and I am pretty pleased with my results.
The other three surgeons I couldn't find pictures of their DI work at the time. I do see some now but they don't look all that great to be honest (no offense to anyone who has had surgery with them). It seems like they also do more Peri surgery than DI but again I don't think it looks that great either.
I will definitely check out Zinsser and Stanwix, I've never heard of them! Thank you for the new resources! I appreciate it
Quote from: CursedFireDean on December 27, 2016, 10:06:32 AM
I have a friend who goes through Whitman Walker and I think he got the info from them but I'm not 100% sure, but he went to Bluebond-Langner for his top surgery and is very happy with his results. She's in Baltimore I believe.
I've definitely heard of her, but I'm not sure if she's in my network. I'll have to check around a bit. Thank you! I appreciate your help.
Whitman Walker club!
I will say re: looking at doctors who routinely do mastectomies versus doctors who regularly perform top surgery on transmen - I don't think we should immediately write off a doctor that has no or limited experience working with trans people. Ultimately it really comes down to what you want and what is important to you. If you look at their results and feel like you would be comfortable with that outcome, then that's what really matters.
What I would focus on is making sure they have results from people who have a similar body type to yours pre-op in terms of size and shape. If you see issues like leftover tissue or things don't appear to be symmetrical, bring it up in the consult. Ask what their plan is for nipples since mastectomies typically don't include nipple grafting.
If you want peri instead of DI, I would be much more selective since it's very easy to screw that up. If that's what you're going for, I would honestly say it's worth appealing to the insurance company.
Quote from: FTMax on December 27, 2016, 12:54:06 PM
She will be in Baltimore for 4 more days. Up to NYU after that.
Oh man, darn! I think I remember hearing that now, forgot about it :P
I am still surprised that the DC area does not have a set of well known surgeons with knowledge in trans related surgeries. There are many high profile hospitals and doctors here...
Quote from: sarah1972 on December 28, 2016, 10:30:29 AM
I am still surprised that the DC area does not have a set of well known surgeons with knowledge in trans related surgeries. There are many high profile hospitals and doctors here...
It is pretty upsetting. The surgeon that did my top surgery in Baltimore is very well known and has done these for years. She's also incredibly friendly and overall a really great doctor, so I can imagine she'd be hard to compete with.
I had my hysterectomy done at GWU by one of the OBGYN's there. She was absolutely fantastic and told me she regularly performs these on transmen. So OP, if/when you start looking for one of those, I'd be happy to refer you to her.
Nobody here doing any kind of lower surgery. Dr. Bluebond-Langner at UMD was the closest, but she's moving. I heard Hopkins is trying to clear up its bad reputation by starting to offer trans care, but unsure what stage that's at and what all it will entail.
My doctor at WWH actually couldn't refer me to anyone for post-operative care for bottom surgery. I asked her if she could think of any local urologists who might have experience with post-SRS transmen and she said she had no idea. Thankfully my surgeon has some local connections in the Baltimore area.
Quote from: FTMax on December 27, 2016, 06:41:49 PM
Whitman Walker club!
I will say re: looking at doctors who routinely do mastectomies versus doctors who regularly perform top surgery on transmen - I don't think we should immediately write off a doctor that has no or limited experience working with trans people. Ultimately it really comes down to what you want and what is important to you. If you look at their results and feel like you would be comfortable with that outcome, then that's what really matters.
What I would focus on is making sure they have results from people who have a similar body type to yours pre-op in terms of size and shape. If you see issues like leftover tissue or things don't appear to be symmetrical, bring it up in the consult. Ask what their plan is for nipples since mastectomies typically don't include nipple grafting.
If you want peri instead of DI, I would be much more selective since it's very easy to screw that up. If that's what you're going for, I would honestly say it's worth appealing to the insurance company.
That makes sense. I'm going back to office in a while to look at more pictures and ask more questions. I'm hopeful that this doctor will be the one. My dysphoria has not been letting up this last month and I need SOMETHING to go right this year.
Quote from: FTMax on December 28, 2016, 11:01:55 AM
It is pretty upsetting. The surgeon that did my top surgery in Baltimore is very well known and has done these for years. She's also incredibly friendly and overall a really great doctor, so I can imagine she'd be hard to compete with.
I had my hysterectomy done at GWU by one of the OBGYN's there. She was absolutely fantastic and told me she regularly performs these on transmen. So OP, if/when you start looking for one of those, I'd be happy to refer you to her.
Nobody here doing any kind of lower surgery. Dr. Bluebond-Langner at UMD was the closest, but she's moving. I heard Hopkins is trying to clear up its bad reputation by starting to offer trans care, but unsure what stage that's at and what all it will entail.
My doctor at WWH actually couldn't refer me to anyone for post-operative care for bottom surgery. I asked her if she could think of any local urologists who might have experience with post-SRS transmen and she said she had no idea. Thankfully my surgeon has some local connections in the Baltimore area.
I would definitely appreciate the name of the OBGYN. I'm planning on starting lower surgeries (hysterectomy first then save up for meta (or phallo depending on new developments)) after my 18th birthday so I can have time to rest before going off to college.
Quote from: maxmattI on December 28, 2016, 07:11:43 PM
I would definitely appreciate the name of the OBGYN. I'm planning on starting lower surgeries (hysterectomy first then save up for meta (or phallo depending on new developments)) after my 18th birthday so I can have time to rest before going off to college.
Dr. Cherie Marfori. She was amazing, can't speak highly enough of her.