Everolimus, Carboplatin, and Etoposide in Treating Patients With Small Cell Lung Cancer or Other Advanced Solid Tumors

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

* Histologically or cytologically confirmed advanced solid tumors for which curative standard treatments are not available

  * Ten additional patients with extensive stage small cell lung cancer are accrued to the expanded cohort once a maximum tolerate dose (or a dose for further exploration) is determined

    * Must be chemotherapy naive
* Measurable or evaluable disease

  * Prior irradiated disease sites are considered measurable if there is clear disease progression following radiation therapy
* No uncontrolled brain or leptomeningeal metastases (including those requiring glucocorticoids)

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

* Zubrod performance status 0-2
* Life expectancy \> 3 months
* Granulocyte count ≥ 1,500/mm\^3
* Platelet count ≥ 100,000/mm\^3
* Creatinine ≤ 1.3 mg/dL OR creatinine clearance \> 40 mL/min
* Serum bilirubin ≤ 1.5 mg/dL (regardless of liver involvement)
* SGOT ≤ 3 times upper limit of normal (ULN)
* INR ≤ 1.3 (≤ 3 if on anticoagulation)
* Fasting serum cholesterol ≤ 300 mg/dL\*
* Fasting triglycerides ≤ 2.5 times ULN\*
* No severe and/or uncontrolled medical co-morbidities or other conditions that could affect participation in the study including, but not limited to, the following:

  * Unstable angina pectoris, symptomatic congestive heart failure, myocardial infarction ≤ 6 months prior to first study treatment
  * Serious uncontrolled cardiac arrhythmia
  * Severely impaired lung function
  * Active (acute or chronic) or uncontrolled infection
  * Non-malignant medical illness that is uncontrolled or that the control may be jeopardized by the study therapy
  * Liver disease (i.e., cirrhosis, chronic active hepatitis, chronic persistent hepatitis)
* No uncontrolled diabetes mellitus (i.e., fasting serum glucose \> 1.5 times ULN)
* No HIV seropositivity
* Not pregnant or nursing
* Fertile patients must use effective contraception

  * No oral, implantable, or injectable contraceptives
* No impairment of gastrointestinal function or gastrointestinal disease that may significantly alter the absorption of everolimus (e.g., ulcerative disease, uncontrolled nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, malabsorption syndrome, or small bowel resection)
* No active, bleeding diathesis
* No known hypersensitivity to everolimus or other rapamycins (e.g., sirolimus, temsirolimus) or to its excipients
* Must be able to take and retain oral medication
* No peripheral neuropathy \> grade 1 as per NCI CTCAE vs. 3 NOTE: \*In case one or both of these thresholds are exceeded, the patient can only be included after initiation of appropriate lipid-lowering medication.

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

* See Disease Characteristics
* Recovered from prior therapy
* More than 3 weeks since prior and no concurrent investigational drugs
* At least 3 weeks since prior chemotherapy
* At least 2 weeks since prior major surgery or completion of radiotherapy
* No immunization with attenuated live vaccines within the past week or during study therapy
* No prior treatment with an mTOR inhibitor (e.g., sirolimus, temsirolimus, or everolimus)
* No chronic treatment with systemic steroids or other immunosuppressive agents
* No concurrent oral anti-vitamin K medication (except low dose coumadin)
* No concurrent medications interfering with everolimus
* No other concurrent anticancer agents