Docetaxel With or Without Phenoxodiol in Treating Patients With Recurrent Advanced Ovarian Epithelial Cancer, Fallopian Tube Cancer, or Primary Peritoneal Cavity Cancer

You may be eligible if

• DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:
• Histologically confirmed diagnosis of 1 of the following:
• * Ovarian epithelial cancer
• * Fallopian tube cancer
• * Primary peritoneal cavity cancer
• Recurrent advanced disease
• * Eligible for second-line to fifth-line chemotherapy
• * Received platinum and taxane combination chemotherapy as first-line treatment with disease recurrence \> 6 months after conclusion of therapy
• * No demonstrated refractoriness or resistance to weekly docetaxel
• Meets 1 of the following criteria:
• * Doubling of blood levels of CA125 in the past 6 months and CA125 levels ≥ 2 times upper limit of normal (ULN)
• * Measurable disease defined as ≥ 1 lesion ≥ 20 mm by conventional techniques or ≥ 10 mm by spiral CT scan
• No active CNS metastases
• * Prior CNS metastases allowed provided they were treated with radiation therapy and disease has been stable for 4 weeks
• PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:
• Karnofsky performance score ≥ 60%
• Not pregnant or nursing
• Negative pregnancy test
• Fertile patients must use effective contraception during and for 3 months after completion of study treatment
• Life expectancy ≥ 3 months
• Creatinine ≤ 1.5 mg/dL
• Transaminases ≤ 3 times upper limit of normal (ULN)
• Bilirubin normal
• Platelet count \> 100,000/mm\^3
• WBC \> 3,000/mm\^3
• Neutrophil count \> 1,500/mm\^3
• Hemoglobin ≥ 8.0 g/dL
• Peripheral neuropathy ≤ grade 1
• Relative proportions of AST, ALT, and alkaline phosphatase according 1 to the following criteria:
• * Alkaline phosphatase (AP) normal AND AST/ALT ≤ 5 times ULN
• * AP ≤ 2.5 times ULN AND AST/ALT ≤ 1.5 times ULN
• * AP ≤ 5 times ULN AND AST/ALT normal
• No active infection
• No concurrent severe and/or uncontrolled medical disease (e.g., uncontrolled diabetes, hypertension, ischemic heart disease, or congestive heart failure)
• No history of chronic active hepatitis or cirrhosis
• No history of severe hypersensitivity to docetaxel or other drugs formulated with polysorbate 80
• PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:
• See Disease Characteristics
• No investigational agents within 4 weeks prior to study entry
• Recovered from prior antineoplastic therapy
• No other concurrent investigational drugs
• No other concurrent chemotherapy, radiotherapy, immunotherapy, or hormonal antitumor therapy
• * Concurrent localized radiation therapy allowed for control of local disease complications (e.g., bone metastases) that do not represent a general progression of the disease status
• No concurrent grapefruit or grapefruit juice
• No concurrent amifostine