DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

• Histologically confirmed invasive ductal adenocarcinoma of the head, neck, and uncinate process of the pancreas

  • Mixed adenocarcinoma tumors allowed if the predominant invasive component of the tumor is adenocarcinoma
  • Stage I or II (clinical stage T1-3, N0-1, M0) disease

• Has undergone pancreaticoduodenectomy at the Johns Hopkins Hospital within the past 8-10 weeks

  • Completely resected (R0) or microscopic residual (R1) disease

• No diagnosis other than ductal adenocarcinoma, including any of the following:

  • Adenosquamous
  • Squamous cell
  • Colloid
  • Islet cell
  • Non-invasive intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms
  • Serous or mucinous cystadenoma or cystadenocarcinoma
  • Carcinoid
  • Small or large cell carcinoma
  • Intraductal oncocytic papillary neoplasms
  • Osteoclast-like giant cell tumors
  • Acinar cell carcinoma
  • Pancreatoblastoma
  • Solid pseudopapillary tumors
  • Undifferentiated small cell carcinoma
  • Non-epithelial tumors (sarcoma, gastrointestinal stromal tumor, or lymphoma)
  • Adenocarcinoma of the ampulla
  • Adenocarcinoma of the distal bile duct
  • Adenocarcinoma of the duodenum
• No recurrent disease
• No metastatic disease, including peritoneal implants or liver and/or lung involvement

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

Age

• 18 and over

Performance status

• ECOG 0-1

Life expectancy

• Not specified

Hematopoietic

• Absolute neutrophil count ≥ 1,500/mm^3
• Platelet count ≥ 100,000/mm^3
• Hemoglobin ≥ 10 g/dL

Hepatic

• Bilirubin ≤ 2 mg/dL
• AST/ALT ≤ 2 times upper limit of normal (ULN)
• Alkaline phosphatase ≤ 5 times ULN

Renal

• Creatinine ≤ 2 mg/dL

Pulmonary

• No asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease requiring systemic corticosteroids

Immunologic

• HIV negative
• No active infection

• No prior or concurrent autoimmune disease requiring treatment with systemic immunosuppressants, including any of the following:

  • Inflammatory bowel disease
  • Systemic vasculitis
  • Scleroderma
  • Psoriasis
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Hemolytic anemia or immune thrombocytopenia
  • Rheumatoid arthritis
  • Systemic lupus erythematosus
  • Sjögren's syndrome
  • Sarcoidosis
• Negative results to viral delayed-type hypersensitivity serology testing if autologous tumor cells are available

Other

• No postoperative complications (e.g., inability to take oral nutrition ≥ 1,500 calories/day, ongoing requirement for long-term biliary stenting, or persistence of wound infection)
• No other malignancy within the past 5 years except nonmelanoma skin cancer
• No uncontrolled medical conditions that would preclude study participation
• No other major active medical or psychosocial problem that could be exacerbated by study treatment
• Not pregnant or nursing
• Negative pregnancy test
• Fertile patients must use effective contraception during and for at least 4 weeks after study participation

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

Biologic therapy

• More than 1 month since prior biologic therapy
• No other concurrent biologic therapy, immunotherapy, or gene therapy for pancreatic cancer

Chemotherapy

• More than 1 month since prior chemotherapy
• No other concurrent chemotherapy for pancreatic cancer

Endocrine therapy

• More than 28 days since prior systemic steroids
• No concurrent systemic corticosteroids

Radiotherapy

• More than 1 month since prior radiotherapy
• No other concurrent radiotherapy for pancreatic cancer

Surgery

• See Disease Characteristics
• Recovered from prior surgery

Other

• More than 1 month since prior participation in an investigational new drug trial
• No other concurrent investigational therapy for pancreatic cancer