Trans patients are now getting a new surgery to give them a combined penis and vagina. known as phalgina.
Phalgina surgeries, a term made of the words phallus and vagina, are offered by multiple clinics in the US for non-binary patients. Britons also claim to have been in discussions with UK surgeons about undergoing the procedure, although none are known to have actually had it.
Usually, trans men and women wanting affirming surgery are given the option of an operation to alter or remove their original genitals and have new ones crafted. But the phalgina does away with this “binary” option, and instead gives patients the chance to have both their original sex organ and the opposite sex organ.
Advocates say such procedures, which usually cost at least £10,000, help people with “unique” non-binary gender identities finally get the body they want, improving their mental health.
Giving a man a vagina while preserving their penis is medically known as a PPV, or “penile preservation vaginoplasty”.
A traditional vaginoplasty for males uses tissue from the penis or scrotum to create the neo-vagina. But some patients who want the penis material preserved opt for an alternative technique that typically involves carving a vagina out of the tissue in the scrotum or perineum, the space between the anus and the genitals.
The opposite procedure, where a female is given an artificial penis while preserving their vagina, is called a vaginal preserving phalloplasty, or VPP. Much like a PPV, a patient gets to keep their original genitals but have an added set to match their gender identity.
Typical phalloplasties use tissue harvested from other parts of the body, usually the arm or thigh, to craft the new organ. This process remains the same in VPP but without the removal of the vagina, uterus and ovaries.
VPPs come with a few options such as potentially altering the body’s urethra so the trans man can urinate from their new penis and the creation of an artificial scrotum.
Penis size can also be customised to patient preference, to some degree. However, the length and girth can be limited by the amount of tissue safely able to be harvested from the patient’s body. The penis can also be made to be erogenous by connecting to the nerves found in the clitoris. Ejaculation is not possible, though.
