DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

• Diagnosis of primary renal cell carcinoma, hepatic metastases, or other solid tumor meeting the following criteria:

  • Not amenable to curative or substantial palliative therapy OR
  • Failed chemotherapy or biological response modifier therapy OR
  • Unlikely to benefit from conventional chemotherapy

  • No more than 5 measurable metastatic masses in the liver

    • No greater than 5 cm in diameter
  • Other tumor sites allowed if location and size amenable to ablation therapy
• Measurable disease

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

Age:

• 18 and over

Performance status:

• ECOG 0-2

Life expectancy:

• More than 4 months

Hematopoietic:

• Granulocyte count at least 1,000/mm^3
• Hemoglobin at least 8.0 g/dL
• Platelet count at least 100,000/mm^3
• No untreated bleeding diathesis

Hepatic:

• PT no greater than 13.5 seconds
• PT/PTT normal if prior warfarin or heparin use

Renal:

• Not specified

Cardiovascular:

• No implanted pacemaker, incompatible aneurysm clip, or other device that would preclude magnetic resonance imaging
• No myocardial infarction within the past 6 weeks
• No unstable angina

Other:

• Not pregnant or nursing
• No serious active infection

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

Biologic therapy:

• See Disease Characteristics
• At least 28 days since prior biological response modifier therapy

Chemotherapy:

• See Disease Characteristics
• At least 28 days since prior chemotherapy

Endocrine therapy:

• Not specified

Radiotherapy:

• No prior radiotherapy to study lesion

Surgery:

• Not specified

Other:

• At least 7 days since prior nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs or aspirin
• At least 1 hour since prior heparin
• No concurrent warfarin
• No concurrent investigational drugs