Gemcitabine With or Without Oxaliplatin in Treating Patients With Locally Advanced or Metastatic Pancreatic Cancer

You may be eligible if

• DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:
• Histologically or cytologically confirmed locally advanced or metastatic pancreatic adenocarcinoma or poorly differentiated carcinoma
• Ineligible for curative resection
• Measurable and/or nonmeasurable disease
• Must have evidence of disease outside prior radiation fields OR radiologically confirmed progression of disease within the radiation fields after completion of radiotherapy
• PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:
• Age
• 18 and over
• Performance status
• ECOG 0-2
• Life expectancy
• Not specified
• Hematopoietic
• WBC ≥ 3,500/mm\^3 OR
• Absolute neutrophil count ≥ 1,500/mm\^3
• Platelet count ≥ 125,000/mm\^3
• Hepatic
• Bilirubin \< 2.0 mg/dL
• AST \< 3 times upper limit of normal (ULN)
• Renal
• Creatinine ≤ 1.5 times ULN
• Cardiovascular
• No uncontrolled cardiac disease
• Other
• Not pregnant or nursing
• Negative pregnancy test
• * Negative vaginal ultrasound for patients with an elevated beta human chorionic gonadotropin level
• Fertile patients must use effective nonhormonal contraception
• No other malignancies within the past 5 years except nonmetastatic, nonmelanoma skin cancer, carcinoma in situ of the cervix, or cancer cured by surgery or small field radiotherapy
• No active or uncontrolled infection
• No other active illness that would preclude study participation
• No symptomatic sensory peripheral neuropathy ≥ grade 2
• PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:
• Biologic therapy
• Not specified
• Chemotherapy
• No prior chemotherapy for metastatic disease
• No prior (including adjuvant) gemcitabine or oxaliplatin
• Prior adjuvant chemotherapy allowed provided there was more than 6 months between the last dose of adjuvant chemotherapy and recurrence of pancreatic cancer
• Prior chemotherapy as a radiosensitizing agent allowed\* NOTE: \*To the primary site
• Endocrine therapy
• Not specified
• Radiotherapy
• See Disease Characteristics
• At least 4 weeks since prior radiotherapy to the primary tumor site and recovered
• No prior radiotherapy to more than 25% of the functional bone marrow
• Surgery
• See Disease Characteristics
• Prior surgical resection allowed
• Other
• No concurrent participation in supportive care trials
• Concurrent enrollment on protocol ECOG-E1Y03 allowed