Liu Ting, celebrated as a national "moral model", announced last Thursday he plans to have gender reassignment surgery at a hospital in Guangzhou.

As the only child in his family, Liu cared constantly for his mother who suffers from uremia and carried her on his back to university from 2005. Two years later, he was awarded the title of national moral model for his devotion.

Liu tried to act manly by keeping his hair short, tanning his body and learning to walk and speak in a masculine manner. However, he said he always felt he was female.

"All those efforts failed to change my mind. I thought of the risks and I don’t ask for any man to love me in the future. All I want is to be myself," Liu told Beijing Times.

"Since I gained gender consciousness, I knew that I am a girl. My face, voice, body shape, manner and mind all prove this. However, my sex organs are male, my identification card says I’m male, and my social identity is male. It hurts me a lot," he said.

For years, Liu’s mother has witnessed his struggle and wanted to help. She took him to see a doctor, who told Liu to "listen to your heart". If Liu wants to change sex, the sooner the better, the doctor said.