Ceritinib and Combination Chemotherapy in Treating Patients With Advanced Solid Tumors or Locally Advanced or Metastatic Pancreatic Cancer

Exclusion Criteria

• •Arms 2, 2E, 3, 3E: patients who previously received \> 2 lines of systemic chemotherapy for advanced or metastatic disease
• •Previous pelvic radiation affecting \>= 25% of the bone marrow; patients who received whole pelvic radiation are excluded
• •Patients who have received the last administration of an anti-cancer therapy including chemotherapy, immunotherapy, hormonal therapy and monoclonal antibodies (but excluding nitrosourea, mitomycin-C, targeted therapy and radiation) =\< 4 weeks prior to starting study drug
• •Patients who have received the last administration of nitrosourea or mitomycin-C =\< 6 weeks prior to starting study drug
• •Patients who have had radiotherapy =\< 4 weeks prior to starting study drug, or =\< 2 weeks prior to starting study drug in the case of localized radiotherapy (e.g., for analgesic purpose or for lytic lesions at risk of fracture)
• •Patients who have received targeted therapy (e.g., sunitinib, sorafenib, pazopanib), except ALK inhibitors, =\< 2 weeks prior to starting study drug
• •Patients who have residual toxicity(-ities) from previous anti-cancer treatment(s) that is/are clinically significant or \> grade 1 are excluded; those whose toxicity(-ities) improved to grade 1 or better will be eligible
• •The patient is less than 5 half-lives from prior ALK inhibitor or targeted therapy (for adequate wash-out) without recovery from treatment toxicities to \< grade 1 or to their pre-treatment levels
• •Patients with known history of extensive disseminated bilateral interstitial fibrosis or interstitial lung disease, including a history of pneumonitis, hypersensitivity pneumonitis, interstitial pneumonia, obliterative bronchiolitis, and clinically significant radiation pneumonitis (i.e., affecting activities of daily living or requiring therapeutic intervention)
• •Patients who have undergone major surgery (e.g. intra-thoracic, intra-abdominal or intra-pelvic), open biopsy or significant traumatic injury =\< 4 weeks prior to starting study drug, or patients who have had minor procedures, percutaneous biopsies or placement of vascular access device =\< 1 week prior to starting study drug, or who have not recovered from side effects of such procedure or injury
• •Known hypersensitivity or infusion reaction to cisplatin and gemcitabine
• •Patients with known hypersensitivity to any of the excipients of ceritinib (microcrystalline cellulose, mannitol, crospovidone, colloidal silicon dioxide and magnesium stearate)
• •Receiving medications that meet one of the following criteria and that cannot be discontinued at least 1 week prior to the start of treatment with ceritinib and for the duration of participation:
• •* Medication with a known risk of prolonging the QT interval or inducing torsades de pointes
• •* Strong inhibitors or strong inducers of cytochrome P450, family 3, subfamily A, polypeptide 4 (CYP3A4)/5
• •* Medications with a low therapeutic index that are primarily metabolized by CYP3A4/5, cytochrome P450, family 2, subfamily C, polypeptide 8 (CYP2C8) and/or cytochrome P450, family 2, subfamily C, polypeptide 9 (CYP2C9)
• •* Therapeutic doses (defined as doses need to achieve target INR \> 1.5) of warfarin sodium (Coumadin) or any other Coumadin-derived anti-coagulant; anticoagulants not derived from warfarin are allowed (e.g., dabigatran, rivaroxaban, apixaban)
• •* Unstable or increasing doses of corticosteroids
• •* Enzyme-inducing anticonvulsive agents
• •* Herbal supplements
• •Any of the following concurrent severe and/or uncontrolled medical conditions which could compromise participation in the study; impaired cardiac function or clinically significant cardiac diseases, including any of the following:
• •* Unstable angina within 6 months prior to screening
• •* Myocardial infarction within 6 months prior to screening
• •* History of documented congestive heart failure (New York Heart Association functional classification III - IV)
• •* Uncontrolled hypertension defined by a systolic blood pressure (SBP) \>= 160 mm Hg and/or diastolic blood pressure (DBP) \>= 100 mm Hg, with or without antihypertensive medication
• •* Initiation or adjustment of antihypertensive medication(s) is allowed prior to screening
• •* Ventricular arrhythmias; supraventricular and nodal arrhythmias not controlled with medication
• •* Other cardiac arrhythmia not controlled with medication
• •* Corrected QT (QTc) \> 450 msec using Fridericia correction on the screening electrocardiogram (ECG)
• •Any active gastrointestinal (GI) impairment which, in the opinion of the investigator, would impair or alter the absorption of ceritinib (e.g., ulcerative colitis, or Crohn's disease)
• •Ongoing GI adverse events \> grade 2 (e.g., nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea) at the start of the study
• •History of alcoholism, drug addiction, or any psychiatric or psychological condition which, in the opinion of the investigator, would impair study compliance
• •Other concurrent severe and/or uncontrolled concomitant medical conditions (e.g., active or uncontrolled infection) that could cause unacceptable safety risks or compromise compliance with the protocol
• •Pregnant or breast-feeding women
• •Women of child-bearing potential, defined as sexually mature women who have not undergone a hysterectomy or who have not been naturally postmenopausal for at least 12 consecutive months (e.g., who has had menses any time in the preceding 12 consecutive months), must have a negative serum pregnancy test =\< 3 days prior to starting study treatment
• •Women of child-bearing potential, who are biologically able to conceive, not employing 2 forms of highly effective contraception; male not using at least at least one form of highly effective contraception will be excluded; highly effective contraception (e.g. male condom with spermicide, diaphragm with spermicide, intra-uterine device) must be used by both sexes during the study and must be continued for 3 months after the end of study treatment; oral, implantable, or injectable contraceptives may be affected by cytochrome P450 interactions, and are therefore not considered effective for this study
• •Patients with untreated brain metastases or who have signs/symptoms attributable to brain metastases and have not been assessed with radiologic imaging to rule out the presence of brain metastases; patients with brain metastases that have been definitively treated and on stable or decreasing dose of steroid within 4 weeks of starting study treatment will be eligible