Aussie Claims Misdiagnosis As Transsexual

Friday, August 19, 2005 7:35:26 AM

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) - A man who says his doctors misdiagnosed him as a transsexual may sue the medical team that advised him to have a sex change, an Australian appeals court ruled.

Alan Michael Finch was 21 when he underwent a sex change operation to become a woman in 1988. By 1996, however, Finch said he was "a mess" and struggling to live life as a woman named Helen.

The following year, Finch began another round of surgery and reverted to life as a man.

Finch claims that the doctors who performed the initial sex change knew he was not a suitable candidate based on a medical report that described his masculinity as above average.

Last year, a court granted Finch an extension to the usual six-year time limit on such cases.