#213 Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia and Gender with Sage Sargent

It’s December which means Spotify Wrapped was announced! If you are one of the 2,616 people that had us on your Spotify Wrapped Podcast section, tag us in your story or post for a shoutout on the show! Thanks to Maya, Em, Carly, Allison and LittleDipperPomskies, for already sharing.

For those that don’t follow us on social media @DNATodayPodcast, here are this year’s highlights…So far this year we have produced 1,747 minutes of new content, that’s nearly 30 straight hours. And it’s more than 98% of other science podcasts.

We are humbled by how much the podcast has grown this year, our followers on Spotify alone grew 85%. And 97% of you discovered us this year. Welcome to all our new listeners from this year! Our reach around the world has expanded now, you are listening from 75 countries! On Spotify we have a rating of 4.9 stars, and we will only keep it that way if you all give us those stars.

HUGE thank you to our team for making all this happen… Corinne, Amanda, Kajal, Sanya, and Ashlyn. Shoutout to our 40+ sponsors who support the show, checkout the full list here.

And most of all THANK YOU LISTENERS! You are why we put so much work into the show. We love including you on the show, so email us what you think the biggest genetics news story of 2022 has been, then you will be featured in our year wrap up episode with Dr. Eric Green. Email is info@DNAtoday.com

Our guest today is Sage Sargent (She/Her), who is a patient advocate for congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH). Sage is a 27 year old non-binary person who was diagnosed with classic CAH before the age of 1.

She has a bachelors in Gender studies with a minor in Ethnic studies from the University of Utah where she graduated in 2021. Through her education and her connection to the queer community Sage has been able to heal some of the disconnect she felt growing up, when she didn’t have the language to describe her experience. Now as an adult Sage hopes that her lived experience as an intersex person can help others who might feel as lost as she once did.

On This Episode We Discuss:

How hormones are imbalanced in people with CAH

The two main types of CAH and their symptoms

Getting diagnosed with CAH

CAH inheritance and carrier screening

Treatments that people with CAH can utilize and their side effects

CAH and the LGBTQIA+ community

CAH and gender identity

Gene therapy for CAH

Advice and insight for parents of a child who has been newly diagnosed with CAH or couples who are carriers of the condition

If you’d like to check out the papers that we referenced in the episode, you can read those here:

Gender-role behaviour and gender identity in girls with classical congenital adrenal hyperplasia and Gender Identity in Patients with Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia

Stay tuned for the next new episode of DNA Today on December 9th, 2022 where we’ll be joined by patient advocate Mike Graglia and genetic counselor Elli Brimble to discuss SynGAP1! New episodes are released every Friday. In the meantime, you can binge over 210 other episodes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, streaming on the website, or any other podcast player by searching, “DNA Today”. Episodes since 2021 are also recorded with video which you can watch on our YouTube channel.

DNA Today is hosted and produced by Kira Dineen. Our social media lead is Corinne Merlino. Our video lead is Amanda Andreoli. Our outreach Intern is Sanya Tinaikar. Our Social Media Intern is Kajal Patel. And our Graphic Designer is Ashlyn Enokian.

See what else we are up to on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and our website, DNAToday.com. Questions/inquiries can be sent to info@DNAtoday.com.

SPONSORED: Are you seeking a position as a Genetic Assistant? People in these vital roles aid with clinical and research patient communication, data entry, genetic testing coordination, and administrative tasks. Therefore training is key! We recommend The Genetic Assistant Online Training Program at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. This online program provides knowledge and skills to learners considering Genetic Assistant positions or those recently hired into these roles who need job training. This program consists of two 10-week instructor-led courses. All you need is a basic understanding of science, particularly biology. At the successful completion of the program, learners will receive a certificate of completion from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and the McKusick-Nathans Department of Genetic Medicine. Applications are open for the spring cohort starting January 23rd, 2023. Applications for partial tuition waivers to help offset the cost of the program are due December 23rd. Don’t wait! Check out the Genetic Assistant Online Training Program at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine now.