Monoclonal Antibody Therapy in Treating Patients With Prostate Cancer

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

* Histologically confirmed prostate cancer
* Disease progression after prior castration

  * At least 3 rising PSA levels at least 1 week apart OR 2 rising levels at least 4 weeks apart
* New osseous lesions on bone scan and/or more than 25% increase in bidimensionally measurable soft tissue disease or appearance of new sites of disease by CT scan or MRI
* Testosterone no greater than 50 ng/mL

  * Medical therapy (e.g., gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogues) to maintain castrate level of testosterone should continue in the absence of surgical orchiectomy
* Progression of disease after discontinuation of prior anti-androgen therapy
* No requirement for palliative therapy within the past 12 weeks
* No active CNS or epidural primary tumor OR active CNS or epidural metastases

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

Age:

* 18 and over

Performance status:

* Karnofsky 60-100%

Life expectancy:

* Not specified

Hematopoietic:

* WBC greater than 3,500/mm3
* Platelet count greater than 100,000/mm3

Hepatic:

* Bilirubin less than 1.5 mg/dL
* Gamma-glutamyl-transferase less than upper limit of normal (ULN)
* AST less than ULN
* PT less than 14 seconds
* No prior autoimmune hepatitis

Renal:

* Creatinine less than 1.5 mg/dL OR
* Creatinine clearance greater than 60 mL/min

Cardiovascular:

* No clinically significant cardiac disease (New York Heart Association class III or IV)

Pulmonary:

* No severe debilitating pulmonary disease

Other:

* Fertile patients must use effective contraception
* No active uncontrolled infection or infection requiring IV antibiotics
* No prior autoimmune disease

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

Biologic therapy:

* No prior murine protein for diagnostic or therapeutic purposes
* No other concurrent anticancer immunotherapy

Chemotherapy:

* At least 4 weeks since prior chemotherapy and recovered
* No concurrent anticancer chemotherapy

Endocrine therapy:

* See Disease Characteristics
* No concurrent anticancer hormonal therapy

Radiotherapy:

* At least 4 weeks since prior radiotherapy and recovered
* Concurrent radiotherapy to localized sites of disease (e.g., bone) allowed if the site does not contain sole measurable lesion

Surgery:

* See Disease Characteristics
* No concurrent surgery

Other:

* Recovered from all prior therapy
* At least 4 weeks since prior therapeutic investigational anticancer drugs
* At least 4 weeks since prior participation in therapeutic clinical trial with an experimental drug
* No prior diagnostic ProstaScint, Myoscint, or Oncoscint scans
* No other concurrent therapeutic investigational anticancer agents
* No concurrent participation in other therapeutic clinical trial with an experimental drug