Inclusion Criteria

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

- Histologically or cytologically confirmed solid tumor

- Unresectable or metastatic disease

- Standard curative or palliative measures do not exist OR are no longer effective OR
patient refused such measures

- No known brain metastases

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

Age

- 18 and over

Performance status

- ECOG 0-1

Life expectancy

- More than 12 weeks

Hematopoietic

- Absolute neutrophil count > 1,500/mm^3

- Platelet count ≥ 100,000/mm^3

- Hemoglobin ≥ 9.0 g/dL

Hepatic

- Bilirubin normal

- ALT and AST ≤ 1.5 times upper limit of normal

- No chronic liver disease

- Hepatitis B or C negative

Renal

- Creatinine normal OR

- Creatinine clearance normal

Cardiovascular

- No symptomatic New York Heart Association class III-IV cardiac disease

- No myocardial infarction within the past year

- No active ischemic heart disease within the past year

- No poorly controlled angina

- No uncontrolled dysrhythmia or dysrhythmias requiring antiarrhythmic drugs

- No transient ischemic attack

- No stroke

- No peripheral vascular disease

- No congenital long QT syndrome

- No history of serious ventricular arrhythmia (ventricular tachycardia or ventricular
fibrillation ≥ 3 beats in a row)

- QTc < 450 msec (for men) and 470 msec (for woman)

- LVEF > 40% by MUGA

- No left bundle branch block

Pulmonary

- No symptomatic pulmonary disease requiring medication, including any of the
following:

- Dyspnea with or without exertion

- Paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea

- Oxygen requirement

- Significant pulmonary disease (e.g., chronic obstructive/restrictive pulmonary
disease

Other

- Not pregnant or nursing

- Negative pregnancy test

- Fertile patients must use effective contraception 4 weeks before, during, and for 6
months after completion of study treatment

- No known HIV positivity

- No other malignancy within the past 5 years except adequately treated cone biopsied
carcinoma in situ of the cervix or basal cell or squamous cell skin cancer

- No ongoing or active infection

- No diabetes mellitus (with evidence of severe peripheral vascular disease or ulcers)

- No psychiatric illness or social situation that would preclude study compliance

- No other uncontrolled illness

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

Biologic therapy

- More than 4 weeks since prior immunotherapy

- Concurrent epoetin alfa allowed

Chemotherapy

- More than 4 weeks since prior chemotherapy (6 weeks for nitrosoureas or mitomycin)

- No prior 17-N-allylamino-17-demethoxygeldanamycin (17-AAG)

Endocrine therapy

- More than 4 weeks since prior endocrine therapy

- Concurrent luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone analogues for androgen-insensitive
prostate cancer and rising prostate-specific antigen allowed

Radiotherapy

- More than 4 weeks since prior radiotherapy (except for palliative treatment)

- No prior irradiation field that potentially included the heart (e.g., mantle)

Surgery

- Not specified

Other

- Recovered from all prior therapy

- Concurrent bisphosphonates allowed

- At least 5 half-lives since prior and no concurrent medication that prolong QTc

- No other concurrent anticancer or investigational agents

- No concurrent grapefruit juice