Gemcitabine and Celecoxib in Treating Patients With Metastatic Pancreatic Cancer

You may be eligible if

• DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:
• Histologically or cytologically confirmed metastatic pancreatic cancer
• Radiographic evidence of disease
• No known brain metastases
• PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:
• Age
• Any age
• Performance status
• ECOG 0-2 OR
• Karnofsky 60-100%
• Life expectancy
• Not specified
• Hematopoietic
• WBC at least 3,000/mm\^3
• Absolute neutrophil count at least 1,500/mm\^3
• Platelet count at least 100,000/mm\^3
• Hepatic
• Bilirubin no greater than 1.5 times upper limit of normal (ULN)
• AST/ALT no greater than 2.5 times ULN
• Renal
• Creatinine normal OR
• Creatinine clearance at least 60 mL/min
• Cardiovascular
• No symptomatic congestive heart failure
• No unstable angina pectoris
• No cardiac arrhythmia
• Gastrointestinal
• No history of peptic ulcer disease
• No gastrointestinal bleeding within the past 3 months
• Other
• Not pregnant or nursing
• Negative pregnancy test
• Fertile patients must use effective contraception
• No prior allergic reactions to compounds of similar chemical or biological composition to study drugs or to sulfonamides
• No prior allergic reaction, asthma, or urticaria after taking aspirin or NSAIDs
• No ongoing or active infection
• No other uncontrolled illness
• No psychiatric illness or social situation that would preclude study compliance
• No other malignancy within the past 5 years except basal cell skin cancer or carcinoma in situ of the cervix
• PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:
• Biologic therapy
• Not specified
• Chemotherapy
• No prior chemotherapy for metastatic pancreatic cancer
• More than 6 months since prior neoadjuvant or adjuvant chemoradiotherapy (including gemcitabine) for pancreatic cancer
• Endocrine therapy
• Not specified
• Radiotherapy
• See Chemotherapy
• More than 6 months since prior radiotherapy
• Surgery
• Not specified
• Other
• More than 30 days since prior investigational agents
• No other concurrent investigational or commercial agents or therapies for the malignancy
• No other concurrent nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)
• No other concurrent cyclo-oxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitors (e.g., rofecoxib)
• Concurrent acetaminophen-containing medications or low-dose aspirin (up to 325 mg/day) for cardiac prophylaxis allowed