Cetuximab and Radiation Therapy in Treating Patients With Stage III-IV Head and Neck Cancer

Inclusion Criteria:

* Histologically proven squamous cell carcinoma of the oropharynx, hypopharynx or larynx
* Stage III/IVa/b squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) by American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) 7 criteria (advanced, but not metastatic)
* Patients must give informed consent
* Patients must have an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status =\< 2
* Platelets \>= 100,000/uL
* Absolute neutrophil count (ANC) \>= 1,500/uL
* Hemoglobin \> 8 g/dl (use of transfusion to achieve this is acceptable)
* Total bilirubin \< 2 X institutional upper limit of normal (ULN)
* Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) (serum glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase \[SGOT\])/alanine aminotransferase (ALT) (serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase \[SGPT\]) =\< 3 X institutional ULN
* Serum creatinine \< 2 x institutional ULN or creatinine clearance \> 50 ml/min as determined by 24 hour collection or estimated by Cockcroft-Gault formula
* Estimated life expectancy of at least 12 weeks
* Negative pregnancy test

Exclusion Criteria:

* Patients may not have received previous therapy for their head and neck SCC, including chemotherapy, radiation therapy, or surgery beyond biopsy
* Second primary malignancy; exceptions are 1) patient had a second primary malignancy but has been treated and disease free for at least 3 years, 2) in situ carcinoma (e.g. in situ carcinoma of the cervix), 3) non-melanomatous carcinoma of the skin
* Patients with metastatic disease beyond the neck and supraclavicular region will be excluded
* Serious concomitant systemic disorders (including active infections) that would compromise the safety of the patient or compromise the patient's ability to complete the study, at the discretion of the investigator; this includes scleroderma
* History of allergic reactions attributed to compounds of similar chemical or biologic composition to cetuximab or cisplatinum or other agents used in the study
* Women who are pregnant; women of childbearing age must agree to undergo a pregnancy test prior to therapy and to use adequate contraception (hormonal or barrier method of birth control; abstinence) prior to study entry, for the duration of study participation and for 6 months after; should a woman become pregnant or suspect she is pregnant while participating in this study, she should inform her treating physician immediately
* Patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection are not automatically excluded, but must meet the following criteria: cluster of differentiation (CD)4 count is \> 499/cu mm and their viral load is \< 50 copies/ml; use of highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART) is allowed
* Patients who have had either myocardial infarction, coronary artery bypass graft, coronary artery stenting, hospital admission for heart related issues such as congestive heart failure or arrhythmia within the last 3 months, will not be allowed on protocol
* Grade 3-4 electrolyte abnormalities (Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events \[CTCAE\], version \[v\]. 4):

  * Serum calcium (ionized or adjusted for albumin) \< 7 mg/dl (1.75 mmol/L) or \> 12.5 mg/dl (\> 3.1 mmol/L) despite intervention to normalize levels
  * Magnesium \< 0.9 mg/dl (\< 0.4 mmol/L) or \> 3 mg/dl (\> 1.23 mmol/L) despite intervention to normalize levels
  * Potassium \< 3.5 mmol/L or \> 6 mmol/L despite intervention to normalize levels
  * Sodium \< 130 mmol/L or \> 155 mmol/L despite intervention to normalize levels