RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as paclitaxel, 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 paclitaxel works in treating patients with locally advanced or metastatic soft tissue angiosarcoma or lymphangiosarcoma that cannot be removed by surgery.

OBJECTIVES:

Primary

• Determine the 2-month objective response rate in patients with locally advanced or metastatic, unresectable soft tissue angiosarcoma or lymphangiosarcoma treated with paclitaxel.

Secondary

• Determine the 4- and 6-month response rate in patients treated with this drug.
• Determine tolerability of this drug in these patients.
• Determine the time to disease progression and overall survival of patients treated with this drug.
• Determine the clinical criteria predicting response in patients treated with this drug.
• Correlate the efficacy of this drug with the expression of genes involved in angiogenesis regulation in these patients.

OUTLINE: This is a multicenter study.

Patients receive paclitaxel IV on days 1, 8, and 15. Treatment repeats every 28 days for up to 6 courses.

PROJECTED ACCRUAL: A total of 15-30 patients will be accrued for this study.

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

• Histologically confirmed soft tissue angiosarcoma or lymphangiosarcoma

  • Locally advanced or metastatic disease
  • Unresectable disease

• Angiosarcomas in previously irradiated areas allowed provided disease is clearly progressive

• Measurable disease

• No Kaposi's sarcoma

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

Age

• 18 to 70

Performance status

• WHO 0-2

Life expectancy

• Not specified

Hematopoietic

• Absolute neutrophil count > 1,500/mm^3
• Platelet count > 100,000/mm^3

Hepatic

• Bilirubin < 3 times upper limit of normal (ULN)
• SGOT and SGPT < 2.5 times ULN
• No severe liver failure

Renal

• Creatinine clearance > 60 mL/min
• No severe kidney failure

Cardiovascular

• LVEF ≥ 50%

Other

• Not pregnant or nursing
• Fertile patients must use effective contraception
• No weight loss ≥ 20% of body weight prior to illness
• Patient must be amenable to receiving care during the day
• No HIV positivity
• No clinical neuropathy
• No known allergy to study drug or to any of its components (e.g., Cremophor EL)
• No other progressive malignant tumor
• No chronic illness (somatic or psychiatric) that would preclude study compliance and follow-up
• No psychological, geographical, or social reason that would preclude study follow-up

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

Biologic therapy

• Not specified

Chemotherapy

• No more than 2 prior courses of chemotherapy

Endocrine therapy

• Not specified

Radiotherapy

• See Disease Characteristics

Surgery

• Not specified

Other

• No other concurrent anticancer therapy
• No concurrent participation in another therapeutic investigational study

Individual participant data will not be shared at an individual level.