Erlotinib in Treating Patients With Stage IIIB, Stage IV, or Recurrent Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

Inclusion Criteria:

* Patients must have pathologically confirmed NSCLC
* Patients must have diagnostic specimen available on paraffin-embedded block
* Patients must have advanced NSCLC (stage IIIB with a malignant pleural effusion or IV disease, or recurrent disease)
* Patients must not have received prior chemotherapy or targeted therapy for metastatic disease, including no prior EGFR inhibitor; patient may have received adjuvant chemotherapy for early stage disease (IB-IIIA), or chemo/XRT for stage IIIA or IIIB disease, provided s/he meets all of the following:

  * It has been at least 6 months since completion of patient's adjuvant chemotherapy for early stage disease (IB-IIIA) or chemo/XRT for stage IIIA or IIIB disease
  * Patient now has advanced disease
* Patients must have measurable disease per RECIST criteria; all sites of disease must be assessed within 4 weeks prior to registration
* Creatinine \< 1.5 mg/dL or a creatinine clearance of \> 50 mL/min
* SGOT(AST) and SGPT(ALT) \< 2 x the institution's upper limit of normal
* Bilirubin \< 1.5 mg/dL
* ANC \> 1500/mm\^3
* PLT \> 100,000/mm\^3
* Patients must have ECOG performance status 0, 1, or 2
* Patients with stable, treated brain metastases are eligible (defined as: patients with brain metastases must have been treated and are asymptomatic and are no longer taking corticosteroids)
* Patients with gastrointestinal tract disease resulting in an inability to take oral medication or a requirement for IV alimentation, prior surgical procedures affecting absorption, or active peptic ulcer disease, are ineligible
* Pregnant and breast feeding women are excluded from the study because the agent used in this study may be teratogenic to a fetus and there is no information on the excretion of the agents or their metabolites into breast milk
* Women of childbearing potential and sexually active males must agree to use an accepted and effective method of contraception (hormonal or barrier methods, abstinence) for the duration of the study
* HIV positive patients receiving combination anti-retroviral therapy are excluded from the study because of possible pharmacokinetic interactions with OSI-774 (Erlotinib)
* Patients must not have had immuno, hormonal or radiation therapy within 2 weeks prior to entering the study; those who have not recovered from adverse events due to agents administered more than 2 weeks earlier are ineligible; previously irradiated areas can be considered "measurable disease" if there has been documented progression
* Patients must not have ongoing or active infection, symptomatic congestive heart failure, unstable angina pectoris, symptomatic cardiac arrhythmia, or psychiatric illness that would limit compliance with study requirements
* Patients must not have serious non-healing wound, or bone fracture, or major surgical procedure within 21 days prior to study entry
* Patients taking Warfarin are eligible
* If the patient is taking Cyp3A4 inducers or inhibitors, they must be discontinued one week prior to starting OSI-774 (Erlotinib)
* Patients must not be enrolled in any other concurrent clinical trials