I've done about 6 rounds of Erbitux and right now can not stand to put on a shirt or tshirt because of the pain. I have about a 4" wide swath of inflamed and blistered skin around my neck...right at collar level. Has anyone else fought this stuff.
Thanks for the help.

Hi Gary, my hubby was on Erbitux for months and had bad rashes from head to toe! One of the things that helped him was Head and Shoulders shampoo [regular] used as a body wash in the shower. Always pat-NEVER rub your skin dry after bathing. There are also several creams [by perscription] that will help- keep asking the Doc until you find one that gives you relief. I also used a strong aloe vera loation to moisturize his skin. But you must clear this with the Doc first. Have you done a search here on Erbitux? Thee are more good suggestions from people who have some experience with it. Watch your fingernails and toenails, the skin around them can crack and get very sore while using this drug. Wishing you best luck with this. Amy in the Ozarks

Hi Gary,
AQUAPHOR ointment! Mom was also taking minicyclene-think that was how to spell it.
When the rash got to be really bad she would put on the aquaphor and then just lay a nice piece of gauze over it so she didn't have to worry about anything touching her skin.
Good luck.

Thanks y'all....mine looks like the skin is melting off my throat...Head and Shoulders was suggested BUT feels like I'm putting gasoline on my neck. I was using aquaphor and a gauze bandage that is impregneated with vaseline....it helped...but when I tried to remove the gauze a whole lot of hide came with it. The search continues......

AQUAPHOR - second vote - helped me a great deal

sorry--forgot to add this. towards the end, mom's gauze or clothing would stick to her and the skin/hyde would come away with it when she tried to remove it. we finally just stood her in the shower and let the warm water gently work it off.
for her the aquaphor really did help. she just finished tx's in sept and in oct had her temp trach removed....again she was dealing with what was like onion skin. they placed a bandage over the tracch hole and used silk tape-stay away from that!!--when she went to remove it later her skin just peeled off. so painful. aquaphor helped again.

Hi Gary-
I've been on Erbitux for a while, but the rash never got that bad, that sounds awful. Are you getting radiation there at the same time and that's making it burn?
If you are in a lot of pain maybe it's time for some pain medications? Nothing wrong with taking them when you are ready.
Melissa

Got a sript for some HydroCortisone cream and turned on to a DoBro solution...add powder to warm water soak cloth in it and lay accross neck. Really felt good and the cream eased some of the pain....and they ordered up some pain meds for me too. I really hate taking any of the pain meds...but I'm taking them now so I can sleep.
Thanks Again for the extra insights

I hope that you have a restful night Gary.

Gary
take the pain medicine, there is no point in needless suffering! Sorry that Erbitux is creating that many problems for you. Look at the bright side you are almost done with it... I had about 10% of one infusion at one point and that landed me in the ER!

Best

Markus

Erbitux is a TOUGH drug! Because it is still new with Head and Neck cancer patients, there is alot to be learned- Gary, the more you can share, the more other people can be helped. Amy in the Ozarks

Well, I am still in a mess with this rash...but we stopped the Eritux two weeks ago, and continued with our radiation treatments. Went to see my Dermatologist and he got me on to a good Hydro Cort. cream and a Silver Sulfite anti bactrial....WOW in three days I was able to put a shirt on again...and now I only have 2 or 3 hot spots YaaaaHooooo. And the really good news is that I finished my treatments last night. I go back Dec 31 for a PETS Scan and then we see if anything is left.

Buzz, too, used the SSD cream, and it worked miraculously for his neck following radiation. I hope other patients' doctors prescribe this; without it, I'm not sure Buzz's neck would have ever healed properly.

Emmylou,
in less than 10 days it got me back to mostly normal. I took it in and showed both Onc's so that if someone else shows this kind of reaction that they'll presribe these creams and help stave off all the problems I had.