ISSM Webinar on Sexual Pain: A Global Call for Awareness and Change in All Genders
This webinar took place on May 20, 2026.
Why does sexual pain remain one of the most under-diagnosed conditions in global health? For too long, sexual pain has been relegated to the shadows of clinical practice, leaving patients of all genders to navigate their discomfort in isolation. As we move toward a more nuanced understanding of pelvic health, this webinar provides a comprehensive update on the physiological, psychological, and surgical factors affecting patients across the gender spectrum. From managing refractory dyspareunia to navigating the complexities of post-surgical care in gender-affirming medicine, our faculty provide actionable insights for your practice.
Program
- Opening by ISSM Representative - Sharon Peleg Nesher (Israel)
- Sexual Pain in Gender-Diverse People - Maurice Garcia (USA)
- Sexual Pain in Men - Marij Dinkelman-Smit (Netherlands)
- UTC Sexual Pain in Women – Mijal Luria (Israel)
- Q&A
Moderator
Sharon Peleg NesherIsrael
Sharon Peleg Nesher
Rotem Center’s CEO and Co-Director of the Rotem Center.
Sharon Peleg Nesher is a certified nurse specializing in oncology and a certified sex therapist. She holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Nursing from Hebrew University and Tel Aviv University, respectively, as well as a Bachelor’s in Psychology from the Open University. She specialized in sexual therapy at Bar-Ilan University and completed a fellowship in Sexual Therapy at Hadassah Mount Scopus Medical Center in Jerusalem. She also observed at the Male Sexual and Reproductive Medicine clinic at Memorial Sloan Kettering in 2018.
Sharon has been practicing as a sexuality therapist for chronic patients since 1999, starting as a sexual therapist for cancer patients at the Israel Cancer Association. Between 2005 and 2007, she interned at Sunnybrook Hospital in Toronto. After returning to Israel, she founded the Mila Clinic (Sexuality for Oncology Patients) at Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center (Ichilov Hospital), leading it until May 2026. In 2009, the clinic received the ICA (Israel Cancer Association) Prize. Sharon is also a lecturer at leading educational institutions in Israel and around the world, including the Gray Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences in Tel Aviv and the School of Medicine at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Presenter
Maurice GarciaUSA
Maurice Garcia, MD, MAS
Clinical Professor of Urology Department of Urology Chief, Division of Benign Urology Director, Cedars-Sinai Transgender Surgery and Health Program
Presenter
Marij Dinkelman-SmitNetherlands
Marij Dinkelman-Smit, MD PhD (1977) is an urologist, EAA certified clinical andrologist and FECSM medical sexologist who specializes in reproductive urology / andrology and male sexual medicine. She graduated from the Erasmus MC University medical school Rotterdam, the Netherlands (2002) and obtained her PhD with her research on the clinical application of sperm DNA fragmentation assessment (2011). She trained in general urology in the Erasmus MC Rotterdam, the Netherlands and the Sint Franciscus Gasthuis Rotterdam, and completed her residency cum laude. Dr Dohle, urologist-andrologist in the Erasmus MC supervised her fellowship training in the Erasmus MC, that focused on microsurgical vasovasostomy, vaso-epididymostomy, microsurgical Testicular Sperm Extraction (TESE), cavernoplasty in Peyronies disease, penile prosthesis implantation and urethraplasty (2013-2014). In 2015, she started a tenured position as Assistant Professor at the department of Urology of the Erasmus MC and was appointed chair of the section in Andrology in 2022. Her research interest is in male factor infertility, male reproductive endocrinology, oncofertility, spermatogenesis, sperm DNA integrity, azoospermia and value based health care. She is actively involved in the Erasmus MC testicular cancer expert center, expert center for rare disease, expert centers for congenital endocrinology, disorders of sex development (including Klinefelter Syndrome) and transitional urology. In 2021 she was elected chair of the multidisciplinary Erasmus MC Fertility Center, the largest IVF/ICSI center in the Netherlands with a focus on male and female gonadal dysfunction and azoospermia.
She is the author of numerous peer-reviewed publications and book chapters and has presented dozens of lectures as an invited speaker at meetings worldwide. She has served as secretary-general of the board of the Dutch Association of Urology, vice-chair of the Dutch Guideline for Male Subfertility, and board member of the international European Association of Urology section of Andrological Urology. She is currently panel member of the EAU guidelines for Sexual and Reproductive Health. And board member of the national Andrology working group of the Dutch Association of Urology and the national multidisciplinary Special Interest Group Andrology of the Dutch Association of Gynecology. She lives in Breda with her husband Maarten and children Hasse, Brecht and Kees.
Speaker
Mijal LuriaIsrael
Dr. Mijal Luria
Dr. Mijal Luria is a Gynecologist and Sex Therapist. She serves as President of the Israeli Society for Sex Therapy (ISST) and is the Past President of the Israeli Society for Sexual Medicine (ILSSM). Since 2004, she has directed the Center for Sexual Health at the Hadassah Mt. Scopus University Hospital, and since 2017, she has been the Co-Director and Clinical Director of the Israeli Center for Sex Therapy – The Rotem Center in Jerusalem. Dr. Luria chairs the “Introduction to Human Sexuality” course at the Hebrew University Faculty of Medicine in Jerusalem, and she developed “Growing Together,” a program for early adolescents and their parents aimed at fostering healthy sexual education.
Her clinical work includes treating sexual difficulties in individuals and couples from diverse backgrounds, with a particular focus on women’s sexual wellbeing. Her therapeutic approach is tailored to each patient’s personal background and belief system.
