Exposed: Black market dealers sell puberty-blocking drugs to British teenagers who are banning cheating

Teenagers convinced they are the wrong gender are flouting an NHS ban on puberty-blocking drugs by buying them online from overseas dealers.

Social media sites like Reddit, X and Facebook have been flooded with links to websites where teenagers can buy the “dangerous” drugs without any age checks or prescriptions.

This week, an undercover Mail on Sunday reporter posing as a teenage girl was able to buy large quantities of puberty blockers sent to Britain from Turkey, Hong Kong and Russia.

Last night Health Secretary Victoria Atkins said she was “horrified” and was “looking closely” at new laws to crack down.

The drugs, which delay the onset of adolescence, were banned from under-18s by the NHS last month after an outcry over their use by London’s Tavistock Gender Identity Development Clinic, which he prescribed them to hundreds of children.

A government review by Dr Hilary Cass found the drugs posed a danger to children and “no evidence” they gave them “time to think” before changing gender.

Doctors warned that the drugs can damage brain and bone development and cause infertility.

This led to a damning government review by Dr Hilary Cass, who said the drugs pose a danger to children. Former Tavistock patients have sued the NHS over the scandal.

Dr Cass also found “no evidence” that the drugs gave young people “time to think” about whether they really wanted to change gender.

But following tips and links on Reddit, a Mail on Sunday reporter posing as a young teenager easily bought the puberty-blocking drugs from three different websites over the past few weeks.

Online pharmacies charge from 52 for a nasal spray to 228 for a syringe. One website boasted “express delivery” and offered a 10% discount for paying with the cryptocurrency Bitcoin.

Serkan Senvardar, a distributor based in Turkey, shipped a testosterone-blocking drug called bicalutamide from Istanbul. It arrived in London seven days after our reporter placed the order.

Sold under the brand name Casodex, bicalutamide is a prescription-only drug commonly used to treat prostate cancer.

Health Secretary Victoria Atkins said she was “horrified” and was “looking closely” at new laws to crack down

But influencers posting on Reddit have advised guys who want to transition to girls that “it’s pretty effective at basically rendering testosterone useless.”

Last week, the MoS tracked Mr Senvardar to the resort of Marmaris in Turkey, where he initially told our undercover reporter he could buy more Casodex. When we later confronted him about his business, he denied involvement in the online operation.

Reacting to our findings last night, Health Secretary Mrs Atkins pledged to look at “legislative options” to crack down on the black market in puberty blockers.

“I am appalled that dangerous drugs like this are being sold to vulnerable children and I commend The Mail on Sunday’s vital public interest journalism,” she said.

Conservative MP Paul Bristow said: “This all sounds like every parent’s worst nightmare. The people who trade in the distribution of these products which can cause irreversible damage to young bodies are vile.

Former Health Secretary Sajid Javid said: “These powerful drugs were never designed to be available on demand, but this research makes it clear that thousands of children are at risk. We must be relentless in stopping this trade.’