I have been asking a lot of questions lately and have received so many thoughtful and helpful replies. So I should start with a big thank you to everyone before I ask yet another question. Thank you!!

I am starting radiation in a few weeks and my RO offered to enroll me in a clinical trial for Erbitux. It is randomized and only half the patients will receive the drug along with the regularly prescribed course of radiation. The trial includes 5 years of extra followup after treatment plus an annual checkup for the rest of my life. I've been reading about Erbitux and the side effects seem manageable in most cases. I have read some posts here from people who had quite a rough time of it, though. I like the idea of the extra follow up, the possibility that it will improve my chances for disease free survival and it seems like a good thing to help with the research. I'm not too crazy about the idea of additional side effects on top of the radiation and it is kind of a big time commitment plus the drug may turn out to not be helpful in cases like mine. Patients receive 11 weekly doses of Erbitux starting the week prior to radiation and there are additional appointments involved as well. If I am in the group that doesn't get the drug, I will still have the additional followup appointments, etc.

I would be very interested to hear about anyone's experiences with Erbitux specifically and clinical trials in general, both good and bad. I have read many posts on the forum on this topic and have done quite a bit of googling as well, but would also really appreciate any additional suggested reading that might be helpful.