Poly-ICLC in Treating Patients With Recurrent or Progressive Anaplastic Glioma

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

* Histologically confirmed intracranial anaplastic glioma, including any of the following subtypes:

  * Anaplastic astrocytoma
  * Anaplastic oligodendroglioma
  * Anaplastic mixed oligoastrocytoma
  * Other anaplastic gliomas NOTE: Patients with an original histology of low-grade glioma are allowed provided a subsequent histological diagnosis of an anaplastic glioma is made
* Must have evidence of tumor recurrence or progression by MRI or CT scan\* NOTE: \*Steroid dose must be stable for at least 5 days before scan
* Prior radiotherapy required

  * Patients who have had prior interstitial brachytherapy or stereotactic radiosurgery must have confirmation of true progressive disease rather than radiation necrosis by positron-emission tomography, thallium scanning, magnetic resonance spectroscopy, or surgical documentation of disease
* Relapsed disease

  * Progression after initial therapy (e.g., radiotherapy with or without chemotherapy)
  * No more than 3 prior therapies (initial therapy and treatment for no more than 2 prior relapses)
  * Surgical resection for relapsed disease with no anticancer therapy for up to 12 weeks followed by another surgical resection is considered 1 relapse
  * For patients who have had prior therapy for a low-grade glioma, the surgical diagnosis of high-grade glioma is considered the first relapse
* Must be registered in the North American Brain Tumor Consortium Data Management Center database

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

Age

* 18 and over

Performance status

* Karnofsky 60-100%

Life expectancy

* More than 8 weeks

Hematopoietic

* WBC at least 3,000/mm\^3
* Absolute neutrophil count at least 1,500/mm\^3
* Platelet count at least 100,000/mm\^3
* Hemoglobin at least 10 g/dL (transfusion allowed)

Hepatic

* Bilirubin less than 2 times upper limit of normal (ULN)
* SGOT less than 2 times ULN

Renal

* Creatinine less than 1.5 mg/dL

Other

* Not pregnant or nursing
* Negative pregnancy test
* Fertile patients must use effective contraception
* No other cancer within the past 3 years except nonmelanoma skin cancer or carcinoma in situ of the cervix
* No active infection
* No concurrent serious medical illness
* No significant medical illness that cannot be adequately controlled with therapy or that would preclude tolerability of study drug
* No disease that would obscure toxicity or dangerously alter drug metabolism

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

Biologic therapy

* At least 1 week since prior interferon or thalidomide
* No prior poly ICLC

Chemotherapy

* See Disease Characteristics
* At least 2 weeks since prior vincristine
* At least 3 weeks since prior procarbazine
* At least 6 weeks since prior nitrosoureas
* No concurrent chemotherapy

Endocrine therapy

* See Disease Characteristics
* At least 1 week since prior tamoxifen

Radiotherapy

* See Disease Characteristics
* At least 4 weeks since prior radiotherapy

Surgery

* See Disease Characteristics

Other

* Recovered from all prior therapy
* At least 1 week since other prior noncytotoxic agents (e.g., isotretinoin), excluding radiosensitizers
* At least 4 weeks since prior cytotoxic therapy
* At least 4 weeks since prior investigational agents