One group on the Mediconsult site focuses on smokers who are trying to quit. Even as I smoke, I hate it, but I can't seem to stop. You did great. Visitors also can get access to information that they wouldn't necessarily get from their doctors. Electronic messages posted to on-line groups for men suffering from prostate cancer, for instance, are so laden with facts and figures they read like engineering journals.
People even move beyond sharing the facts and trade tips.
They exchange the kind of personal information that doctors aren't likely to learn in medical school. A recent exchange on Mediconsult involved two business executives who have to deal with incontinence. One, embarrassed, wanted advice on how to discreetly carry a diaper to an airplane restroom. Dr. Kane continually posts messages to offer words of encouragement or refer patients to other sites and sources that may be able to offer more information on a particular topic. He also weeds out inappropriate or errant postings.