Lovastatin in Treating Patients At High Risk of Melanoma

Inclusion Criteria:

* Presence of at least 2 clinically atypical nevi on the body that are reasonably matched in regards to level of clinical atypia, or one atypical mole and another atypical mole \>= 8 mm in diameter (for this pair the two moles do not have to be closely matched and only one of them must be \>= 8 mm in diameter)
* A history of melanoma is not required for study entry
* Patients with completely resected stage I or II who have not received adjuvant therapy in the past 3 months
* Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 1 or better (Karnofsky \> 70%)
* Leukocytes \>= 3,000/uL
* Absolute neutrophil count \>= 1,500/uL
* Platelets \>= 100,000/uL
* Total bilirubin within normal institutional limits
* Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) (serum glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase \[SGOT\])/alanine aminotransferase (ALT) (serum glutamic pyruvate transaminase \[SGPT\]) =\< 2.5 X within normal limits
* Creatinine within normal institutional limits
* Ability to understand and the willingness to sign the written informed consent
* Subjects willing and able to participate for the full duration of the study
* For women of child-bearing potential (women are considered not of childbearing potential if they are at least 2 years post-menopausal and/or surgically sterile), she:

  * has been using adequate contraception (abstinence, intrauterine device \[IUD\], birth control pills, or spermicidal gel with diaphragm or condom) since her last menses and will use adequate contraception during the study
  * is not lactating, and
  * has had a documented negative serum pregnancy test within 30 days prior to the first dose of study medication Should a woman become pregnant or suspect she is pregnant while participating in this study, she will be taken off study and be advised to inform her treating physician immediately; a telephone follow-up with the subject post-delivery will be completed to obtain outcome of pregnancy
* Men partnered with a female of child-bearing age must agree to use adequate contraception while on the study (i.e. abstinence, IUD, birth control pills, or spermicidal gel with diaphragm or condom)

Exclusion Criteria:

* Subjects with untreated melanoma of any stage or locally advanced (\>= 4 mm in Breslow's thickness) or metastatic (stage III or IV) melanoma; subjects with melanoma may be considered for trial after complete resection of Stage I or II melanoma and those who have declined or are ineligible to go on any available adjuvant clinical trials known to the investigators or the subjects are eligible
* Subjects who are on adjuvant therapy or experimental therapy for melanoma currently or within the last 3 months prior to enrollment into this study
* Subjects currently or within the last three months before enrollment on lipid lowering agents of any type
* History of allergic reactions attributed to compounds of similar chemical or biologic composition to lovastatin
* Clinically significant unrelated systemic illness
* Subjects with any medical or psychosocial condition that, in the opinion of the investigator, could jeopardize his/her participation in and compliance with the study
* Subjects may not be receiving any other investigational agents
* Pregnant or breast feeding females, or females of child bearing age not using a reliable method of contraception (use of lovastatin is contraindicated in pregnancy)
* Subjects who have been diagnosed with malignancies other than cutaneous melanoma, cutaneous basal cell carcinoma, or cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma within 5 years of study entry, unless they:

  * are currently without evidence of disease
  * have not received treatment for invasive malignancy in the last 6 months
  * have no current or planned therapy, and
  * have an expected disease-free survival of at least 5 years from study entry
* Chronic use of: itraconazole; ketoconazole; erythromycin; clarithromycin; telithromycin; human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) protease inhibitors; nefazodone; cyclosporine; gemfibrozil and other fibrates; danazol; amiodarone (amiodarone hydrochloride); verapamil; coumarin anticoagulants; niacin (nicotinic acid) (\>= 1 g/day); or large quantities of grapefruit juice (\> l quart daily)
* Subjects with a history of coronary artery disease or stroke