Arsenic Trioxide With or Without Ascorbic Acid in Treating Patients With Myelofibrosis

Inclusion Criteria:

* Diagnosis of primary myelofibrosis, essential thrombocythemia related myelofibrosis, or polycythemia vera related myelofibrosis requiring therapy, including:

  * Those previously treated and relapsed or refractory
  * Or, if newly diagnosed, with intermediate or high risk according to Lille scoring system (adverse prognostic factors are: hemoglobin \[Hb\] \< 10 g/dl, white blood cell count \[WBC\] \< 4 or \> 30 x 10\^9/L; risk group: 0 = low, 1 = intermediate, 2 = high)
  * Or with symptomatic splenomegaly (must be \>= 23 cm by ultrasound in the longitudinal axis)
* Signed informed consent: patients must have signed consents for both the arsenic trioxide with ascorbic acid protocol and for the hematologic malignancy procurement protocol to be eligible to participate
* Patients must have been off any primary myelofibrosis (PMF)-directed experimental therapy for 4 weeks prior to entering this study and have recovered from the toxic effects (grade 0-1) of that therapy; treatment with hydroxyurea and erythropoietin are permitted until study initiation
* Serum bilirubin levels =\< 2 times the upper limit of the normal range for the laboratory (ULN); higher levels are acceptable if these can be attributed by treating physician to active hemolysis or ineffective erythropoiesis due to myelofibrosis
* Serum glutamic-pyruvic transaminase (SGPT) (alanine aminotransferase \[ALT\]) levels =\< 2 x ULN
* Serum creatinine levels =\< 1.5 x ULN
* Women of childbearing potential must have a negative serum or urine pregnancy test prior to arsenic trioxide treatment and should be advised to avoid becoming pregnant
* Men must be advised to not father a child while receiving treatment with arsenic trioxide
* Both women of childbearing potential and men must practice effective methods of contraception (those generally accepted as standard of care measures)
* Women of childbearing potential are women who are not menopausal for 12 months or who have not undergone previous surgical sterilization
* If the subject is a woman of childbearing potential, she must use a medically acceptable form of contraception during the study period and for 30 days thereafter
* If the subject is a man he must be surgically sterile or must use a medically approved method of contraception for the duration of the study and for 60 days following the last dose of arsenic trioxide

Exclusion Criteria:

* Nursing and pregnant females; should a woman become pregnant or suspects she is pregnant while participating in this study, she should inform her treating physician immediately
* New York Heart Association (NYHA) grade II or greater congestive heart failure
* Unstable angina
* Corrected QT interval (QTc) \> 450 in the presence of potassium \>= 4 mEq/L and magnesium \>= 1.7 mEq/L
* Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) \> 2
* Major surgical procedure, open biopsy, or significant traumatic injury within 28 days, or anticipation of the need for major surgical procedure during the course of the study
* Biopsy or other minor surgical procedure, excluding placement of a vascular access device or bone marrow biopsy, within 7 days prior to study enrollment
* Ongoing serious, non-healing wound, ulcer, or bone fracture
* Known hypersensitivity to any component of arsenic trioxide