The Big "C"

Cancer.

Probably

The most feared word

When preceded by

Terminal or stage four

As an uncle of mine

Is experiencing.

But

To Transpeople.

Just one

Of the possible side-effects

Increasing the odds

Above those faced

By the general public

From our HRT program

We live with

From both genders.

As our bodies react

To the hormonal imbalance

Induced changes

While transitioning.

Will not plead ignorance

By not knowing the risks

That I am exposing

My body to.

Having spent

Too many hours

Combing through

A reference library

And the Internet.

Armed with photocopies

And printouts

As I tried to decode

The medical terms

Foreign to me

Into understandable English.

Each passing year

My dread grows

With the annual physical

As the doctor explores

My body.

A lump

Or a bump

Will be discovered

Where none should be.

For you see

To many transwomen

Their femininity is measured

By the size of their breasts.

Thus

To remove them

They are

Less than whole

As a woman

In their eyes.

Author's Note

Like diabetes, cancer is one of the possible side-effects that a transperson may experience within their lifetime.