Louis J. G. Gooren (14 December 1943 – 17 September 2023) was a Dutch

endocrinologist Endocrinology (from ''endocrine'' + '' -ology'') is a branch of biology and medicine dealing with the endocrine system, its diseases, and its specific secretions known as hormones. It is also concerned with the integration of developmental events ...

known for his work with

transsexual A transsexual person is someone who experiences a gender identity that is inconsistent with their assigned sex, and desires to permanently transition to the sex or gender with which they identify, usually seeking medical assistance (incl ...

and

transgender A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth. The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...

people. He treated over 2,200 transsexual people and was one of the first physicians to treat

transgender youth Transgender youth are children or adolescents who do not identify with the Sex assignment, sex they were assigned at birth. Because transgender youth are usually dependent on their parents for care, shelter, financial support, and other needs ...

Life and career

Louis J. G. Gooren was born in

Wanssum Wanssum is a village in the Dutch province of Limburg. It is located in the municipality of Venray. History The village was first mentioned in 1242 as Wanzem, and means "settlement of Wando or Wanso (person)". Wanssum developed at the confluenc ...

on 14 December 1943. He earned his medical degree from the Catholic University of Nijmegen in 1970, then specialized in

internal medicine Internal medicine, also known as general medicine in Commonwealth nations, is a medical specialty for medical doctors focused on the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases in adults. Its namesake stems from "treatment of diseases of ...

and endocrinology at the

Vrije Universiteit The (abbreviated as ''VU Amsterdam'' or simply ''VU'' when in context) is a public research university in Amsterdam, Netherlands, founded in 1880. The VU Amsterdam is one of two large, publicly funded research universities in the city, the othe ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

. He founded the gender clinic (now known as the Center of Expertise on Gender Dysphoria) there in 1975, and he graduated in 1976. Gooren then studied with

John Money John William Money (8 July 1921 – 7 July 2006) was a New Zealand American psychologist, sexologist and professor at Johns Hopkins University known for his research on human sexual behavior and gender. Money advanced the use of more accur ...

Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

. He earned his board certification in internal medicine and endocrinology in 1977 and completed his Ph.D. on testicular hormones in 1981.Swan, Norman (4 September 2000)
Gender Dysphoria.
ABC Radio In 1988 he became Professor of Endocrinology and held the special position Professor of Transsexuality at the Vrije Universiteit.

Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide writing in 16 languages. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency ...

(24 November 1988). Transsexuality professor happy with publicity. '' Florida Sun-Sentinel'' He was featured in the 2005 documentary, '' Middle Sexes: Redefining He and She''. Gooren was a professor emeritus at Vrije Universiteit from 2008, and he worked as a consultant in

Chiang Mai, Thailand Chiang Mai, sometimes written as Chiengmai or Chiangmai, is the largest city in northern Thailand, the capital of Chiang Mai province and the second largest city in Thailand. It is north of Bangkok in a mountainous region called the Thai hig ...

. His work also covers

gender identity Gender identity is the personal sense of one's own gender. Gender identity can correlate with a person's assigned sex or can differ from it. In most individuals, the various biological determinants of sex are congruent and consistent with the in ...

and human sexual differentiation.Zhou J, Hofman MA, Gooren LJG, Swaab DF (2 November 1995)
A sex difference in the human brain and its relation to transsexuality.
''

Nature Nature is an inherent character or constitution, particularly of the Ecosphere (planetary), ecosphere or the universe as a whole. In this general sense nature refers to the Scientific law, laws, elements and phenomenon, phenomena of the physic ...

'' 378, 68 – 70. Gooren also published research on

male menopause Late-onset hypogonadism (LOH) or testosterone deficiency syndrome (TDS) is a condition in older men characterized by measurably low testosterone levels and clinical symptoms mostly of a sexual nature, including decreased desire for mating, fewer s ...

.Gooren, Peter Chye Huat Lim (2001). ''The aging male.'' MediTech Media Asia Pacific, He held an honorary professorship in male health at Hang Tuah University in

Surabaya, Indonesia Surabaya is the capital city of East Java province and the second-largest city in Indonesia, after Jakarta. Located on the northeastern corner of Java island, on the Madura Strait, it is one of the earliest port cities in Southeast Asia. Acco ...

. Louis Gooren died on 17 September 2023, at the age of 79.Overlijdensbericht Louis Wiet Gooren

References

External links

* *Gooren, Louis (16 April 1993)
Closing speech
at Transsexualism, medicine and law speech (via Press for Change) 1943 births 2023 deaths Dutch endocrinologists Radboud University Nijmegen alumni Gender transition and medicine People from Venray {{netherlands-scientist-stub