Robert A. Wilson (gynecologist)

Robert A. Wilson was an American gynecologist who is known for writing the best-selling 1966 book Feminine Forever. He is also known for his organization the Wilson Research Foundation (WRA). In Feminine Forever, Wilson promoted the use of estrogen therapy to avoid the menopause and associated symptoms. He characterized menopause as a serious disease state and made strong claims about the effectiveness and safety of menopausal hormone therapy in alleviating it and improving quality of life and health. Wilson's claims were criticized as not being based on adequate research and evidence. Subsequently, trials such as the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) contradicted Wilson's claims and showed that menopausal hormone therapy could have significant medical risks and that its benefits were not as great as once believed.

Wilson's early medical career was unremarkable, and he did not publish his first papers until 1962, when he was in his late 60s.

It was revealed by Wilson's son, Ronald Wilson, that Wyeth-Ayerst had secretly paid all of the fees for Wilson to write his book and also helped finance his foundation. Other pharmaceutical companies additionally funded the Wilson Research Foundation. Within 10 years of the publishing of his book, in which Wilson promoted the use of conjugated estrogens (Premarin) and of menopausal hormone therapy in general, Premarin became the fifth most-prescribed drug in the United States.