Sorafenib in Treating Patients With Metastatic Kidney Cancer That Has Not Responded to Sunitinib or Bevacizumab

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

• Histologically confirmed renal cell carcinoma with a component of clear cell histology
• Metastatic disease
• Disease progression, as defined by RECIST criteria, after prior treatment with sunitinib malate or bevacizumab
• Patients must have received ≥ 1 course (4 weeks) of sunitinib malate or ≥ 2 doses of bevacizumab AND have RECIST-defined objective progression during or within 4 months after completing treatment with sunitinib malate or bevacizumab
• Measurable disease by RECIST criteria
• CNS metastases allowed provided patient has undergone prior surgery and/or radiotherapy AND has no evidence of further CNS disease progression by CT scan or MRI ≥ 2 weeks after treatment of CNS metastases

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

• ECOG performance status (PS) 0-1 or Karnofsky PS 70-100%
• WBC ≥ 3,000/μL
• Absolute neutrophil count ≥ 1,500/μL
• Platelet count ≥ 75,000/μL
• Total bilirubin ≤ 1.5 times upper limit of normal (ULN)
• AST/ALT ≤ 2.5 times ULN
• Creatinine ≤ 2.0 times ULN
• Negative pregnancy test
• No significant cardiovascular disease, including any of the following:
• Congestive heart failure (New York Heart Association class III-IV heart disease)
• Active angina pectoris requiring nitrate therapy
• Uncontrolled dysrhythmias
• Cardiovascular event within the past 6 months (e.g., transient ischemic attack/cerebrovascular accident, myocardial infarction, or vascular surgery)

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

• See Disease Characteristics
• At least 2 weeks since prior systemic therapy, radiotherapy, or major surgery and recovered
• No prior sorafenib tosylate
• No other concurrent investigational agents
• No other concurrent anticancer therapy
• No concurrent prophylactic growth factors