I don't particularly trust John Byrne's recounting of events, but he discussed Claremont's "Is there any reason..." in an interview back in the mid-1980s. His take on it was, "Well, Chris, Scott has been a non-female since his first appearance in X-Men #1 in 1963...", which leaves one with the very strong sense that Claremont was, in fact, overusing the question.