Combination Chemotherapy Plus Cetuximab in Treating Patients With Liver Metastases From Colorectal Cancer

You may be eligible if

• DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:
• History of completely resected primary adenocarcinoma of the colon or rectum
• * No gross or microscopic evidence of residual disease
• Liver metastases, meeting 1 of the following criteria:
• * Not optimally resectable
• * Requires resection of all 3 major hepatic veins, the portal vein bifurcation, or the retrohepatic vena cava
• * Includes the main right or main left portal vein and the main hepatic vein of the opposite lobe
• * Requires more than a right or left trisegmentectomy
• * At least 6 metastatic lesions distributed diffusely in both lobes of the liver
• Measurable disease
• * At least 1 measurable lesion ≥ 20 mm
• No evidence of extrahepatic metastases by physical examination or x-ray
• No previously resected extrahepatic metastases
• PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:
• Age
• 18 and over
• Performance status
• ECOG 0-1
• Life expectancy
• Not specified
• Hematopoietic
• Hemoglobin ≥ 9 g/dL
• Absolute neutrophil count ≥ 1,500/mm\^3
• Platelet count ≥ 100,000/mm\^3
• Hepatic
• AST ≤ 3 times upper limit of normal (ULN)
• Bilirubin ≤ ULN
• No preexisting chronic hepatic disease (e.g., chronic active hepatitis, cirrhosis) that would preclude surgical resection of metastases
• Renal
• Creatinine ≤ 1.5 times ULN
• Cardiovascular
• No myocardial infarction within the past 6 months
• No clinical evidence of congestive heart failure
• No New York Heart Association class III-IV heart disease
• No significant cardiac disease
• No uncontrolled hypertension
• No unstable angina
• No congestive heart failure
• No uncontrolled arrhythmias
• Gastrointestinal
• Adequate oral nutrition with estimated caloric intake of ≥ 1,500 calories/day
• No severe anorexia or frequent nausea and/or vomiting
• No history of gastrointestinal bleeding that has not been appropriately addressed
• Other
• Not pregnant or nursing
• Negative pregnancy test
• Fertile patients must use effective contraception
• Able to tolerate major surgery
• No prior allergic reaction or known sensitivity to chimerized or murine monoclonal antibody therapy
• No documented presence of human anti-mouse antibodies
• No known allergy to other platinum compounds
• No other malignancy within the past 5 years except basal cell or squamous cell skin cancer, carcinoma in situ, or tumors associated with less than 10% probability of death within 5 years of diagnosis
• No preexisting neuropathy ≥ grade 2
• No symptomatic pulmonary fibrosis or interstitial pneumonitis
• No uncontrolled bacterial or viral infection
• HIV negative
• No fungal infection
• PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:
• Biologic therapy
• No colony-stimulating factors within 24 hours of day 1 of each course
• No concurrent immunotherapy
• Chemotherapy
• At least 1 year since prior adjuvant systemic fluorouracil with or without levamisole or with or without leucovorin calcium
• No prior oxaliplatin
• No prior systemic chemotherapy for metastatic disease
• No prior chemoembolization for metastatic disease
• No prior hepatic artery infusion chemotherapy for metastatic disease
• No other concurrent chemotherapy
• Endocrine therapy
• Not specified
• Radiotherapy
• At least 12 months since prior adjuvant radiotherapy
• Prior radiofrequency ablation allowed
• No prior radiotherapy to the liver
• No prior radiotherapy to more than 25% of the bone marrow
• No concurrent radiotherapy
• Surgery
• See Disease Characteristics
• More than 21 days since prior abdominal exploration (with or without intestinal resection)
• Other
• No prior anti-EGFR-directed therapy
• Prior cryotherapy allowed
• No oral cryotherapy on day 1 of each course