Sodium Stibogluconate and IFNa-2b Followed By CDDP, VLB and DTIC Treating Pts.With Advanced Melanoma or Other Cancers

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

* Histologically confirmed melanoma or other malignancies

  * Must be refractory or resistant to established treatments OR have metastatic disease for which no effective therapy has been established
  * Gliomas or controlled CNS metastasis allowed

    * A CT scan or MRI must confirm stable brain metastases within 28 days of study entry
    * Patients with primary CNS malignancies refractory to other therapies are eligible
* Malignancy potentially responsive to sodium stibogluconate and/or interferon alfa-2b and combination chemotherapy
* Patients must have measurable or evaluable disease

  * Evaluable disease can include clinically or radiographically nonmeasurable tumor, specific tumor markers, or stage IV patients with no evidence of disease (NED)

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

* Inclusion criteria:

  * ECOG performance status 0-2
  * Granulocytes \> 1,500/μl
  * Platelets \> 100,000/μl
  * Creatinine \< 1.5 x upper limit of normal (ULN)
  * Bilirubin \< 1.5 x ULN
  * AST and ALT \< 1.5 x ULN (unless due to hepatic metastases)
  * Potassium ≤ 5.0 mmol/L
  * Magnesium ≤ 2.4 mg/dL
  * Creatinine clearance ≥ 60 cc/min
  * Ejection fraction ≥ 50%
* Exclusion criteria:

  * Pregnant or lactating women and fertile women or men unless surgically sterile or using effective contraception

    * All female patients of childbearing potential or less than 1 year postmenopausal must have a negative β-HCG pregnancy test at baseline and practice a medically acceptable method of birth control (i.e., oral contraceptives for at least 3 months, implantation of an intrauterine device for at least 2 months, or barrier methods \[e.g., vaginal diaphragm, vaginal sponge, or condom with spermicidal jelly\]) during and for 3 months after study initiation
  * History of atrial fibrillation, flutter, or other serious arrhythmia (excluding asymptomatic atrial or ventricular premature complexes) in the past 24 months
  * History of congestive heart failure currently requiring treatment; angina pectoris; or other severe cardiovascular disease (i.e., New York Heart Association class III or IV heart disease)
  * Baseline ECG abnormalities suggestive of cardiac conduction delay (i.e., first degree or greater atrio-ventricular block and/or complete or incomplete \[QRS \> 120 ms\] bundle branch block)
  * Baseline ECG abnormalities suggestive of repolarization abnormalities (i.e., QTc ≥ 0.48 sec)
  * Culture positive acute infections requiring antibiotics within the past 14 days

    * Patients on long term suppressive antibiotic therapies are eligible
  * Known to be positive for HBsAg
  * Patients judged to not be psychologically prepared to understand informed consent or comply with an investigational study

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

* Inclusion criteria:

  * Prior interferon therapy is allowed if administered ≥ 4 months ago
  * At least 3 weeks since prior major surgery, radiation therapy, or chemotherapy
* Exclusion criteria:

  * No prior treatment with interferon, sodium stibogluconate, cisplatin, vinblastine, or dacarbazine, except if given in an adjuvant setting
  * Patients with a prior history of solid organ allografts or allogeneic bone marrow transplant
  * Patients taking the following medications will not be eligible:

    * Amiodarone (Cordarone)
    * Disopyramide (Norpace)
    * Dofetilide (Tikosyn)
    * Procainamide (Procanbid or Pronestyl)
    * Quinidine (Quinaglute)
    * Sotalol (Betapace)
    * Erythromycin
    * Azithromycin (Z-pack)
    * Clarithromycin (Biaxin)
    * Pentamidine (Pentacarinat)
    * Trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (Bactrim)
    * Bepridil (Vascor)
    * Phenothiazines (e.g., prochlorperazine \[Compazine\], promethazine \[Phenergan\], or chlorpromazine \[Thorazine\])
    * Butyrophenones (e.g., Haloperidol \[Haldol\])
    * Risperidone (Risperdal)
    * Any other antipsychotic medication
    * Tricyclic or tetracyclic antidepressants (e.g., imipramine \[Tofranil\], amitriptyline \[Elavil\], desipramine \[Norpramin\], or nortriptyline \[Pamelor\])
    * Monoamine oxidase inhibitors
    * High-dose methadone
    * Arsenic trioxide
    * Dolasetron (Anzemet)
    * Any herbal preparations
  * Use of daily glucocorticoids except for physiological replacement