SJG-136 in Treating Patients With Solid Tumors That Are Metastatic or Cannot Be Removed By Surgery

Inclusion Criteria:

* Patients must have histologically confirmed solid tumor malignancy that is metastatic or unresectable and for which standard curative or palliative measures do not exist or are no longer effective
* Prior chemotherapy or immunotherapy allowed
* Time interval must be at least 4 weeks since prior chemotherapy or immunotherapy, 6 weeks if the last regimen included BCNU or mitomycin C
* Radiation therapy to \< 25% of hematopoietic bone marrow is allowed
* ECOG performance status =\<2 (Karnofsky \>= 60%)
* Life expectancy of greater than three months
* Recovered from prior therapy
* Women of child-bearing potential and men must agree to use adequate contraception (hormonal or barrier method of birth control; abstinence) prior to study entry and for the duration of study participation
* Ability to understand and the willingness to sign a written informed consent document
* WBC \>= 3,000/mm\^3
* Absolute neutrophil count \>= 1,500/mm\^3
* Platelet count \>= 100,000/mm\^3
* Bilirubin normal
* AST and ALT =\< 2.5 times upper limit of normal
* Creatinine =\< 1.5 mg/dL OR creatinine clearance ≥ 60 mL/min
* No unstable angina pectoris

Exclusion Criteria:

* Patients receiving any other investigational agents
* Uncontrolled intercurrent illness including, but not limited to ongoing or active infection, symptomatic congestive heart failure, unstable angina pectoris, cardiac arrhythmia, or psychiatric illness/social situations that would limit compliance with study requirements
* Pregnant women are excluded from this study
* Because there is an unknown but potential risk for adverse events in nursing infants secondary to treatment of the mother with SJG-136, breastfeeding should be discontinued if the mother is treated with SJG-136
* History of allergic reactions attributed to compounds of similar chemical or biologic composition to SJG-136
* HIV-positive patients receiving combination anti-retroviral therapy are excluded from the study because of possible pharmacokinetic interactions with SJG-136
* With the exception of alopecia (and other situations in which the organ dysfunction or symptoms are considered clinically insignificant or irrelevant to this study), patients may not have baseline organ dysfunction or symptoms that qualify as Grade 2 or greater by CTC AE v. 3.0
* No other chemotherapy, immunotherapy, radiation therapy, surgery for cancer (including resection of any metastases), specific antitumor therapy, or experimental medications will be permitted while the patients are participating in this study
* Patients who have had chemotherapy or radiotherapy within 4 weeks (6 weeks for nitrosoureas or mitomycin C) prior to entering the study or those who have not recovered from adverse events due to agents administered more than 4 weeks earlier
* Palliative radiation therapy is not allowed