Brenda,
There are a few of us here have experience with Erbitux. You can find what's been posted so far by using the search function at the top of the page (under the 'post a reply' buttons) and enter "Erbitux" as the keyword and choose "all forums."

The basics are that it was just approved this year here in the US for use with oral cancers, but it has been used for some time to effectively treat colorectal cancers. There are a few people here who have been/are still involved in clinical trials. Erbitux works differently than other chemo drugs; it is a monoclonal antibody and seeks a very specific substance in the body and binds to it.

Here are a few links to more info:
http://www.fda.gov/CDER/DRUG/infopage/Erbitux/erbituxQA.htm
http://www.bms.com/news/press/data/fg_press_release_6232.html
http://www.cancer.org/docroot/NWS/c...w_Approved_for_Head_and_Neck_Cancers.asp


My husband had 8 Erbitux treatments administered weekly. His side effects were relatively mild: the rash (you'll read a lot about the rash) and also dry, cracking skin on his fingers and toes.

I've read about the stir in the UK over Erbitux. Even here, our oncologist had to do some arm-twisting with our insurance company to have it covered.

Joyce

CG to Tom dx SCC 5/06; right neck lymph nodes removed, dx right tonsil and tonsillectomy 6/06; rad and chemo started 7/06; treatment COMPLETED 9/06 33x rad; Erbitux (8x); Cisplatin (2);