OBJECTIVES:~Primary~Determine the antitumor activity of 17-N-allylamino-17-demethoxygeldanamycin (17-AAG) in patients with metastatic malignant melanoma.~Determine the progression-free rate in patients treated with this drug.~Secondary~Determine the toxicity profile of this drug in these patients.~Determine the duration of response in patients treated with this drug.~Determine the survival of patients treated with this drug.~OUTLINE: This is a nonrandomized, open-label, multicenter study.~Patients receive 17-N-allylamino-17-demethoxygeldanamycin (17-AAG) IV over 1 hour on days 1, 8, 15, and 22. Treatment repeats every 28 days for 3 courses in the absence of disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. After 3 courses of treatment, disease response is assessed. Patients with stable or responding disease receive additional courses of treatment.~After completion of study treatment, patients are followed at 28 days and then every 3 months thereafter.~Peer Reviewed and Funded or Endorsed by Cancer Research UK~PROJECTED ACCRUAL: A total of 15-25 patients will be accrued for this study within 12-18 months.
RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as 17-N-allylamino-17-demethoxygeldanamycin, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing.~PURPOSE: This phase II trial is studying how well 17-N-allylamino-17-demethoxygeldanamycin works in treating patients with metastatic malignant melanoma.