A transgender woman battling stage four rectal cancer has accused her doctors of discrimination after a secret recording captured her surgical team discussing her gender identity, a lawsuit alleged. Jennifer Capasso, 42, filed a lawsuit in New York Supreme Court in March accusing the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) in Manhattan of discrimination.
She alleged the hospital misgendered her, changed her medical files from 'female' to 'male' without her consent, and that her care team mocked her during surgery, according to the complaint obtained by the Daily Mail.
Capasso became an MSK patient after being diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic rectal cancer in 2020 and claims she was mistreated throughout her multi-year treatment at the facility.
She caught doctors allegedly mocking her after she secretly made an audio recording of a March 2022 surgery to remove a malignant tumor from her lung, the lawsuit said.
Operating room staff commented on her having 'man parts,' said being trans was 'not right' and 'doesn't make sense,' and referred to both Capasso and her transgender partner as 'men,' the complaint alleged.
The lawsuit further claims that an operating room nurse called a hospital administrator during the procedure to demand that Capasso's sex designation in her patient records be changed from 'female' to 'male.'
MSK has denied discriminating against Capasso in its own court filings and argued her 'secret' recording invaded the privacy of its health care workers. The hospital also denied misgendering Capasso and changing her sex designation in her records.
The lawsuit alleges that MSK's alleged treatment of Capasso violates the prohibition on discrimination based on gender identity in health care settings under city and state human rights laws.
Under New York City’s LGBTQ Health Care Bill of Rights, transgender patients are guaranteed the right to have their gender identity 'recognized, affirmed and documented.'
Staff are also required to use a patient's 'designated name and pronouns,' which should also be reflected in medical records.
Capasso began her gender transition in 2015 and began undergoing plastic surgery to look more feminine in 2021, the New York Times reported.
She began 'radical surgical intervention' after being diagnosed with cancer because she 'wasn't going to die looking like the way I looked,' Capasso told the Times.
She claims her physical transformation made her feel 'pretty' and helped build her confidence, but alleged that every time she went to MSK for treatment, she was reminded that she was 'very visibly trans.'
Capasso alleged that she felt 'unsafe and humiliated' and suffered 'heightened gender dysphoria' after her colorectal surgeon misgendered her and referred to her using male pronouns during a June 2021 procedure, the lawsuit claimed.
She told her treating oncologist about the alleged discrimination and switched to another colorectal surgeon in October that year.
Capasso learned in December that her cancer had recurred after an MRI revealed a metastatic tumor on her lung.
She underwent a lung resection surgery at MSK on March 7, 2022 and decided to record the procedure on her phone, which she had placed in her handbag.
She told the newspaper her decision to record the surgery was 'motivated by curiosity' and that she was eager to know 'exactly what the surgeons discovered.'
But the recording instead revealed alleged discrimination against Capasso by her own care team.
Capasso caught doctors allegedly mocking her after she secretly initiated an audio recording of a March 2022 surgery to remove a malignant tumor from her lung, the lawsuit said. Operating room staff commented on her having 'man parts,' said being trans was 'not right' and 'doesn't make sense,' and referred to both Capasso and her transgender partner as 'men'
The recording captured a nurse announcing that Capasso 'still has man parts' and that she 'doesn't understand it,' the lawsuit said. Another surgical team member repeated 'it's not right' twice and added 'it doesn't make sense.'
Capasso was referred to as 'a transgender man' and 'a male to female transgender' by staff during the procedure, the complaint alleged.
Staff also allegedly referred to the patient and her then-partner, who is also a transgender woman, as being 'both men.'
During the surgery, a nurse noted that Capasso's sex was listed as 'female' in her patient records, which allegedly sparked a debate about whether her female sex designation conflicted with hospital policies.
That same nurse then called the hospital administrator to complain about Capasso's sex designation and demand it be changed, the complaint said.
Capasso alleged the sex designation in her patient records was changed from 'female' to 'male' without her knowledge or consent shortly after the surgery and remained that way until early January 2025.
Capasso, who after her initial diagnosis was only expected to live for 18 months, found out again in August this year that her cancer has returned.
Despite the alleged poor treatment by staff, she is continuing to receive treatment at MSK because they are one of the best cancer hospitals in the US, she added.
'I'm still alive,' she told the Times. 'I can't complain.'
MSK has denied discriminating against Capasso in its own court filings and argued her 'secret' recording invaded the privacy of its health care workers. The hospital also denied misgendering Capasso and changing her sex designation in her records
The Daily Mail has approached lawyers for Capasso for comment.
MSK declined to comment to the Daily Mail, saying the hospital 'does not comment on ongoing litigation.'
But MSK's lawyers, in court papers, said: 'The secret recording captured portions of a discussion that occurred during surgery while plaintiff was under anesthesia in which staff members discussed plaintiff's transgender status with every reasonable expectation that plaintiff would not hear this discussion.'
'Plaintiff's clandestine recording is largely inaudible, such that it is impossible to ascertain the speakers or the full context of their discussion,' the attorneys added.
