OBJECTIVES:~I. Determine whether the change in percent of apoptotic cells on tumor biopsies before and after treatment with BMS-275291 is a valid endpoint in patients with HIV-related Kaposi's sarcoma.~II. Determine the safety and tolerability of this drug in these patients. III. Determine the antitumor effects of this drug in these patients. IV. Determine the effect of this drug on overall quality of life and tumor-specific symptoms in these patients.~V. Determine the effect of this drug on CD4 and CD8 cell counts and percentages and HIV viral load in these patients.~VI. Determine the effect of this drug on human herpes virus-8 (HHV-8) viral load and correlate HHV-8 viral burden, tumor stage, and prognosis in these patients.~VII. Determine the peak plasma concentration of this drug in these patients.~OUTLINE: This is a dose-escalation, multicenter study.~Patients receive oral BMS-275291 1-2 times daily. Treatment repeats every 4 weeks in the absence of disease progression or unacceptable toxicity.~Cohorts of 6 patients receive escalating doses of BMS-275291 until the recommended phase II dose (RPTD) is determined. The RPTD is the dose at which no more than 1 of 6 patients experiences dose-limiting toxicity and more than 1 of 6 patients experiences clinical response or at least 5 of 6 patients demonstrate biologic activity. An additional 29 patients are treated at the RPTD.~Quality of life is assessed on day 15 of the first course and then every 28 days thereafter.~Patients are followed for at least 1 month.
Phase I/II trial to study the effectiveness of BMS-275291 in treating patients who have HIV-related Kaposi's sarcoma. Drugs such as BMS-275291 may stop the growth of Kaposi's sarcoma by stopping blood flow to the tumor.