Vaccine Therapy in Treating Patients With Stage III or Stage IV Melanoma

You may be eligible if

• DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:
• Histologically confirmed cutaneous melanoma
• * Stage III or IV disease
• * Recurrent or de novo stage III disease allowed if disease is unresectable and no definitive treatment is available
• gp100- and HLA-A201-positive
• Surgically accessible tumor, defined by 1 of the following:
• * Pulmonary lesions approachable by thoracoscopic procedure
• * Skin or superficial soft tissue or lymph node lesions amenable to resection under local anesthesia
• * Malignant ascites or pleural effusion
• Measurable disease in addition to surgically accessible tumor \> 2.0 cm
• No CNS metastases
• No mucosal or ocular melanoma
• PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:
• Age
• Any age
• Performance status
• ECOG 0-1
• Life expectancy
• More than 3 months
• Hematopoietic
• WBC \> 3,000/mm\^3
• Platelet count \> 75,000/mm\^3
• Hepatic
• Bilirubin \< 2.0 mg/dL
• Renal
• Creatinine \< 2.0 mg/dL
• Immunologic
• No active infection requiring treatment
• No clinically significant autoimmune disorder
• No immune deficiency disorder
• HIV negative
• Other
• Antecubital vein accessible for leukapheresis
• No other malignancy within the past 5 years except nonmelanoma skin cancer or squamous cell carcinoma in situ of the cervix
• No pre-existing comorbid disease that would preclude study compliance
• Not pregnant or nursing
• Negative pregnancy test
• Fertile patients must use effective barrier contraception
• PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:
• Biologic therapy
• No prior melanoma vaccine therapy
• More than 6 weeks since prior immunotherapy
• Chemotherapy
• No prior chemotherapy for metastatic melanoma
• Endocrine therapy
• No concurrent corticosteroids
• Radiotherapy
• More than 6 weeks since prior radiotherapy
• Surgery
• Not specified
• Other
• No concurrent systemic immunosuppressive therapy