Erlotinib and Radiation Therapy in Treating Older Patients With Stage I, Stage II, Stage III, or Stage IV Esophageal Cancer

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

* Biopsy-proven primary squamous cell carcinoma or adenocarcinoma of the esophagus or gastroesophageal (GE) junction

  * GE junction tumors with 50% or more tumor located in the esophagus determined by radiologic or endoscopic evaluation
  * Stage I-IVA disease determined by CT scan or MRI of the chest and abdomen

    * Stage IVB disease allowed if metastases to distant regional lymph nodes (celiac or cervical) only and no other sites
* Not a surgical candidate and ineligible for chemotherapy due to any of the following:

  * Neuropathy
  * Cardiac disease
  * Performance status 2
  * General overall condition felt by the investigator to be a contraindication to platinum-based therapy
* Bronchoscopy with biopsy and cytology required if primary esophageal cancer is \< 26 cm from incisors
* No evidence of clinically active interstitial lung disease (patients who are asymptomatic with chronic, stable, radiographic lung changes allowed)

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

* ECOG performance status 0-2
* Life expectancy \> 4 months
* WBC ≥ 3,000/mm³
* ANC ≥ 1,500/mm³
* Platelet count \> 100,000/mm³
* Bilirubin ≤ 1.3 mg/dL
* ALT and AST ≤ 2.5 times upper limit of normal (ULN)
* Alkaline phosphatase ≤ 2.5 times ULN
* No prior malignancies except basal cell or squamous cell skin cancer, in situ cervical cancer, or superficial transitional cell bladder cancer, unless diagnosed and/or treated \> 2 years prior to current study and are without evidence of recurrence
* No history of allergy to erlotinib or any of its excipients
* No serious, uncontrolled, concurrent infection
* No clinically serious, uncontrolled medical conditions that the investigator feels might compromise study participation
* No lack of physical integrity of the upper gastrointestinal tract or malabsorption syndrome
* No unwillingness to participate or inability to comply with the protocol for the duration of the study

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

* No prior chemotherapy or radiotherapy for this tumor
* No prior resection or attempted resection of esophageal cancer
* No prior anti-epidermal growth factor receptor therapy (unless given in an adjuvant setting and completed at least 12 months earlier)
* No participation in any investigational drug study within the past 4 weeks
* No HIV-positive patients receiving antiretroviral therapy
* No concurrent CYP3A4/5 inducers or inhibitors