Paul, I am very sorry to hear this. My husband noticed a reduction in the size of the affected lymph node within about a week and a half of the first Erbitux infusion - well before the radiation could have worked. The earache that he had from the primary tumor also disappeared pretty early on.

My husband did have the rash - which is generally a good sigh that it is working. The rash was annoying, but did not really slow him down that much. It is cummulative, though, and if there are skin issue, they will be more severe after 3 months.

If the Erbitux does help, it could buy you some pretty good quality time together. It has the rash as a side effect, but generally does not make the patient as sick as the other chemos (there are execptions of course).

Hope this helps. Best wishes to you both.

Maria