Vaccine Therapy in Treating Patients With Kidney Cancer

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

• Histologically confirmed renal cell carcinoma

  • Stage III or IV disease involving invasions beyond Gerota's fascia, regional lymph node involvement, or distant metastases OR
  • Recurrent disease involving lymph node metastases or soft tissue nodules
• Measurable disease by anatomic-based radiological tests (unless no evidence of disease as documented by prior surgery)
• Planned resection of tumor to establish an autologous tumor cell line

• No active CNS metastases such as brain metastases, spinal cord compression, or leptomeningeal disease

  • Prior brain metastases or spinal cord compression allowed provided there is radiographic evidence of lack of progression and no requirement for pharmacologic doses of corticosteroids

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

Age:

• 16 and over

Performance status:

• ECOG 0-2

Life expectancy:

• At least 4 months

Hematopoietic:

• Hematocrit greater than 25%
• Platelet count greater than 100,000/mm3
• No ongoing transfusion requirements
• No active blood clotting or bleeding diathesis

Hepatic:

• Bilirubin no greater than 2.0 mg/dL
• Albumin at least 3.0 g/dL
• No significant hepatic dysfunction

Renal:

• Creatinine no greater than 2.0 mg/dL
• No significant renal dysfunction

Cardiovascular:

• No underlying cardiac disease associated with New York Heart Association class III or IV heart function
• No unstable angina related to atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease

Other:

• No other malignancy within the past 5 years except carcinoma in situ, basal cell or localized squamous cell skin cancer, or localized prostate cancer
• No active infection
• No other active medical condition that could be eminently life threatening
• Not pregnant
• Fertile patients must use effective contraception

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

Biologic therapy:

• Other prior putative vaccines allowed
• Recovered from prior biologic therapy
• No concurrent biologic therapy except epoetin alfa for patients with hematocrit less than 36%

Chemotherapy:

• At least 3 weeks since prior chemotherapy and recovered
• No concurrent chemotherapy

Endocrine therapy:

• See Disease Characteristics
• No concurrent corticosteroids

Radiotherapy:

• At least 3 weeks since prior radiotherapy (including whole-brain radiotherapy) and recovered
• No concurrent radiotherapy

Surgery:

• See Disease Characteristics
• Recovered from prior surgery

Other:

• Concurrent bisphosphonates allowed for patients with lytic bone metastases
• No concurrent digoxin or other medications designed to improve cardiac output
• No other concurrent anticancer therapy or investigational therapy