NHS England has launched a review into the use of hormone treatments for young people who want to change gender. 

The review will be overseen by Dr Hilary Cass, former president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, with the findings to be published later this year, the Guardian reports.

"This is a fast-developing area of medicine with emerging evidence and high public interest," Cass said.

"I look forward to chairing this independent group, bringing together medical and non-medical experts with a range of perspectives, to make evidence-based recommendations about the future use of these drugs."

The announcement of the review coincides with a legal challenge against the UK's only gender identity development service (GIDS), the Tavistock and Portman NHS foundation trust, over its approach to the treatment of young people with gender dysphoria. 

The legal challenge was launched by 23-year-old Keira Bell, a former patient at Tavistock who was given hormone blockers and cross-sex hormones as a teenager.  

She is supported in the case by the mother of a 15-year-old autistic girl who is on the waiting list for hormone treatment, and former Tavistock psychiatric nurse Susan Evans. 

They argue that children are too young to give informed consent to medical treatment for gender reassignment and that they are potentially being put at risk because the long-term consequences of such treatment are still unknown. 

Commenting on the NHS England review, a spokeswoman for the Tavistock and Portman trust said: "GIDS adopts an evidence-based approach to the care of children and young people with gender identity development issues and works on a case-by-case basis. We welcome this independent review of the current evidence. We know we provide a good service to our patients and their feedback is overwhelmingly positive.

"As ever, we welcome the opportunity to think with others as to how to continually improve on the care we provide. We have always contended this is a rapidly changing area of clinical practice that warrants regular and informed review."