ISSWSH 2026 Recap: Testosterone, Research Funding & Women's Sexual Pleasure | Dr. Tami Rowen

Sexual medicine is underfunded, misunderstood, and often dismissed. But it's also one of the most collaborative fields in healthcare. Dr. Tami Rowen and I recap this year's ISSWSH conference and what it revealed about where the field is heading.

Dr. Tami Rowen is an associate professor of OBGYN at UCSF and the current president-elect of ISSWSH (International Society for the Study of Women's Sexual Health). She's been prescribing testosterone therapy for over a dozen years and has been instrumental in shaping sexual medicine education and research.

We discuss:

• Why the top research at ISSWSH focused on sexual pleasure, not just prevention.

• What the testosterone data actually shows vs. what social media claims.

• Why treating hormone levels isn't evidence-based.

• How body image and sexual function differ after mastectomy vs. lumpectomy.

• Why sexual medicine has almost no federal research funding.

• What technoference is and how it's affecting intimacy.