As part of my chronic vulvovaginal candidiasis (CVVC) journey, I carefully studied countless research papers, bought and read medical textbooks, took online courses meant for practitioners, and sought expertise from across the world. For most diseases (especially those that affect men!), patients don’t ever need to go THIS far for an accurate diagnosis and treatment — however, my vulvovaginal pain was repeatedly misdiagnosed for 9 months by top doctors and I was given many of the wrong treatments that either did nothing or made my pain worse. I am not a medical professional, but I needed to take matters into my own hands and become an expert myself in order to heal.

Below is a collection of the research papers, books, and videos that helped me the most — for anyone interested in learning more. I am deeply grateful to Professor Gayle Fischer, Dr. Marjorie Crandall, Dr. Dean Mitchell, Kate Waters, Dr. Moira Bradfield-Strydom, the Falsetta Lab at University of Rochester, Dr. Jack Sobel, Dr. Tania Day, and many other clinicians and researchers who are doing the incredibly valuable work to study and treat CVVC.

Further Reading and Research

Professor Gayle Fischer is an Australian dermatologist and leading expert on CVVC — she has significantly contributed to the knowledge on this condition and proven that it is entirely treatable.

Professor Gayle Fischer - Chronic Thrush (2016)

Source: Healthed Australia (link)

Dr. Marjorie Crandall is a Ph.D. microbiologist and researcher who has devoted her career to studying candida and founded Yeast Consulting Services to help patients overcome infections.

Interview with Dr. Crandall on The Smartest Doctor in the Room podcast (2023)

Source: The Smartest Doctor in the Room, Youtube (link)

In 2025, Dr. Jack Sobel and Dr. Tania Day published a research paper that reviews existing literature on CVVC and details the latest research on pathogenesis, symptoms, and treatment.

Dr. Jack Sobel is an infectious disease specialist and one of the top vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC) experts in the world. He has previously emphasized that VVC cannot be diagnosed in the absence of a positive culture or microscopy — an assertion that stood in stark contrast to the research of CVVC experts such as Dr. Gayle Fischer and Dr. Marjorie Crandall. However, his 2025 research paper with Dr. Tania Day entitled “Genital cutaneous candidiasis versus chronic recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis: distinct diseases, different populations” finally explains that women with CVVC can indeed have negative candida cultures, and while this may cast doubt on the diagnosis, they can be fully responsive to antifungal therapy. The research paper also acknowledges that CVVC and vulvodynia may be concurrent diagnoses. This recent publication is a significant breakthrough because it finally validates the work of Dr. Fischer and Dr. Crandall (detailed above), after many years of opposing perspectives regarding the importance of a positive candida swab as diagnostic criteria.

The 2025 research paper can be found and purchased here: Genital cutaneous candidiasis versus chronic recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis: distinct diseases, different populations

Other helpful resources are linked below:

Chronic vulvovaginal Candida hypersensitivity: An underrecognized and undertreated disorder by allergists (2015)

  • Jonathan Bernstein and Luqman Seidi explain how some women have a hypersensitivity to candida albicans and can be successfully treated with candida immunotherapy

Itraconazole Improves Vulvodynia in Fungus Culture-Negative Patients Post Fluconazole Failure (2021)

  • Rodger Rothenberger, Wendy Jones, and Colin MacNeill treated vulvodynia patients with 400mg daily itraconazole, despite vulvodynia patients having a negative culture for yeast infection. This study demonstrated a ~70% reduction in cotton swab test pain for patients who continued itraconazole for 5 to 8 weeks.

Studies conducted by the Falsetta Lab at University of Rochester on hypersensitivity to candida in women diagnosed with vulvodynia:

Other podcasts and online trainings: