Lenalidomide, Docetaxel, and Carboplatin in Treating Patients With Advanced Solid Tumors

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

* Histologically or cytologically proven solid tumor
* Measurable or evaluable disease
* Refractory to standard treatment
* No prior failure of a docetaxel and carboplatin regimen except in the adjuvant setting
* History of brain disease allowed, provided the following criteria are met:

  * Brain disease previously treated with radiotherapy or surgery
  * Asymptomatic with no active brain disease, as documented by CT scan or MRI, for at least 3 months

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

* ECOG performance status 0-2
* Absolute neutrophil count ≥ 1,500/mm\^3
* Platelet count ≥ 100,000/mm\^3
* Creatinine ≤ 1.5 mg/dL
* Bilirubin normal
* AST and ALT ≤ 2 times upper limit of normal (ULN) (5 times ULN if hepatic metastases are present)
* Alkaline phosphatase ≤ 3 times ULN
* Not pregnant or nursing
* Negative pregnancy test
* Fertile patients must use effective contraception during and for 4 weeks after completion of study treatment
* No serious medical condition, laboratory abnormality, or psychiatric illness that would preclude giving informed consent, expose the patient to unacceptable risk, or affect the interpretation of study data
* No known hypersensitivity to thalidomide
* No history of erythema nodosum, characterized by a desquamating rash, while taking thalidomide or similar drugs
* No pre-existing peripheral neuropathy ≥ grade 2
* No known hypersensitivity or intolerance to taxanes
* No known HIV positivity
* No known infectious hepatitis, types A, B, or C

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

* See Disease Characteristics
* No more than 2 prior chemotherapy regimens
* At least 28 days since prior cancer therapy, including radiotherapy, biologic therapy, hormonal therapy, chemotherapy, or surgery
* At least 28 days since any other prior investigational drug or therapy
* No prior lenalidomide
* No other concurrent chemotherapy or biologic therapy
* No concurrent radiotherapy
* No concurrent use of any other anticancer agents or treatments
* No prophylactic granulocyte colony-stimulating factors (G-CSF) during the first course of study treatment
* No concurrent prophylactic antibiotics
* No concurrent treatment with the following medications:

  * Systemic corticosteroids (except as prophylaxis for docetaxel administration)
  * Estrogens
  * Azoles
  * Macrolides
  * Cyclosporine
  * Rifampin
  * Phenytoin