Pegylated Arginine Deiminase in Treating Patients With Metastatic Melanoma That Cannot Be Removed by Surgery

You may be eligible if

• DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:
• Histologically confirmed metastatic melanoma, meeting any of the following criteria:
• * Progressive disease after chemotherapy, radiotherapy, surgery, or immunotherapy
• * No longer responding to standard therapy OR have refused standard therapy
• Unresectable disease
• Measurable or evaluable disease
• No clinical ascites
• No symptomatic pleural effusion
• PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:
• Life expectancy ≥ 12 weeks
• Karnofsky performance status 70-100%
• Bilirubin ≤ 3.0 mg/dL
• Albumin ≥ 3.0 g/dL
• Alkaline phosphatase \< 5 times upper limit of normal (ULN)
• Serum glucose \> 60 mg/dL
• Amylase \< 1.5 times ULN
• Absolute neutrophil count \> 1,500/mm³
• Platelet count \> 100,000/mm³
• No New York Heart Association class III-IV heart failure
• No serious infection requiring treatment with antibiotics
• No known allergy to E. coli drug products (e.g., sargramostim \[GM-CSF\])
• Not pregnant or nursing
• Negative pregnancy test
• Fertile patients must use 2 forms of effective contraception
• PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:
• See Disease Characteristics
• At least 4 weeks since prior anticancer therapy
• At least 4 weeks since prior surgery and recovered
• No concurrent participation in another investigational drug study