Two new studies suggest that gender-affirming hormones prescribed to transgendered persons are less risky than birth control pills. All major medical associations agree that transgendered people should be able to express their gender in ways they feel comfortable, and that this is the most effective treatment for psychological distress caused by incongruence between sex assigned at birth and gender. Because existing research on transgender hormone therapy is limited and conflicting, this has led to some physicians denying patients this treatment out of concern that it could significantly increase the risk of health problems such as blood clots and cardiovascular disease. 1 in 4 transgendered women resort to illegally obtaining their cross-sex hormones. The results of the studies were not conclusive due to a small sample size, but this underscores a need for more large scale, long-term studies on transgender issues. The studies can be found here and here.