Perifosine in Treating Patients With Locally Advanced, Unresectable, or Metastatic Pancreatic Cancer

You may be eligible if

• DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:
• Histologically confirmed adenocarcinoma of the pancreas
• Locally advanced, unresectable, or metastatic disease
• Measurable disease
• No known brain metastases
• PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:
• Age
• 18 and over
• Performance status
• ECOG 0-1
• Life expectancy
• Not specified
• Hematopoietic
• WBC at least 3,500/mm\^3
• Platelet count at least 100,000/mm\^3
• Hemoglobin at least 10 g/dL
• Hepatic
• AST no greater than 2 times upper limit of normal (ULN)
• Bilirubin no greater than 2 times ULN
• Renal
• Creatinine no greater than 1.4 mg/dL
• Cardiovascular
• No symptomatic congestive heart failure
• No unstable angina pectoris
• No cardiac arrhythmia
• Other
• Not pregnant or nursing
• Negative pregnancy test
• Fertile patients must use effective contraception
• No ongoing or active infection
• No psychiatric illness or social situation that would preclude study compliance
• No other concurrent illness that would preclude study participation
• PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:
• Biologic therapy
• Not specified
• Chemotherapy
• No prior chemotherapy for pancreatic cancer
• More than 6 months since prior chemotherapy for other diseases
• Endocrine therapy
• Not specified
• Radiotherapy
• At least 4 weeks since prior radiotherapy and recovered
• Surgery
• At least 4 weeks since prior surgery and recovered
• Other
• No other concurrent investigational agents for pancreatic cancer
• No concurrent combination antiretroviral therapy for HIV-positive patients