monoclonal antibody therapy in treating patients with ovarian epithelial cancer, melanoma, acute myeloid leukemia, myelodysplastic syndrome, or non-small cell lung cancer

Conditions: Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(15;17)(q22;q12); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Atypical Chronic Myeloid Leukemia, BCR-ABL1 Negative; Myelodysplastic/Myeloproliferative Neoplasm, Unclassifiable; Previously Treated Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Recurrent Melanoma; Recurrent Non-small Cell Lung Cancer; Recurrent Ovarian Epithelial Cancer; Stage IV Melanoma; Stage IV Non-small Cell Lung Cancer

Summary: this phase i trial is studying the side effects of monoclonal antibody therapy in treating patients with ovarian epithelial cancer, melanoma, acute myeloid leukemia, myelodysplastic syndrome, or non-small cell lung cancer. monoclonal antibodies can locate tumor cells and either kill them or deliver tumor-killing substances to them without harming normal cells

primary objectives: i. to determine the safety of mdx-ctla-4 in patients previously and not previously vaccinated with gm-csf-based vaccines using lethally irradiated, autologous melanoma, ovarian cancer, acute myelogenous leukemia/myelodysplasia or lung cancer cells. ii. to identify preliminary evidence of biologic activity and efficacy. outline: patients receive anti-cytotoxic t-lymphocyte-associated antigen-4 monoclonal antibody iv over 90 minutes on day 1. courses repeat every 2 months in the absence of disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. patients are followed monthly until disease progression. projected accrual: a total of 48 patients (12 per disease type; 36 previously treated with a sargramostim (gm-csf)-expressing autologous tumor cell vaccine and 12 not previously treated with this vaccine) will be accrued for this study.

Eligibility criteria:
inclusion criteria: * patients previously vaccinated with gm-csf-based vaccines using lethally irradiated, autologous melanoma, ovarian cancer, acute myelogenous leukemia/myelodysplasia, or non-small cell lung cancer cells; patients with acute myelogenous leukemia/myelodysplasia or non-small cell lung cancer who have not been vaccinated with an autologous, gm-csf based vaccine * \>= 4 weeks since treatment (chemo-, radiation, hormone, immuno-, etc., therapy) * patients must have recovered from any acute toxicity associated with prior therapy * measurable epithelial ovarian cancer, melanoma, aml/mds, or non-small cell lung cancer * no standard curative treatment options * not require immediate palliative therapy * patients with epithelial ovarian cancer must have persistent or recurrent disease following primary surgery and primary chemotherapy * patients with melanoma must be stage iv disease * patients with aml/mds, but without mds, must be: a) in second relapse or b) first relapse with no option for bone marrow transplant or c) not a candidate for immunosuppressive chemotherapy due to age or comorbid disease * patients with non-small cell lung cancer must be not curable by standard surgery, chemotherapy, and/or radiation * life expectancy \>= 12 weeks * ecog performance status of 0, 1 or 2 * written informed consent * due to the unknown effects of mdx-ctla-4 on the fetus or nursing infant, pregnant or nursing women should not be included; women should be either: post-menopausal for at least 1 year; surgically incapable of bearing children; or utilizing an intrauterine device, and/or spermicide and barrier, for contraception; during the study, use of oral contraception alone is not acceptable; women of childbearing potential must have a negative serum beta-hcg pregnancy test conducted during screening, and a negative urinary beta-hcg pregnancy test conducted within 24 hours prior to treatment; due to the unknown effects of mdx-ctla-4 on the fetus, men should not father children during the study * wbc \> 1,000 cells/mm\^3 (except for aml/mds patients) * serum creatinine \< 2 mg/dl * platelets \> 75,000 cells/mm\^3 (except for aml/mds patients) * ast and alt \< 2 x unl * total bilirubin \< 2 x unl exclusion criteria: * active infection * autoimmune disease requiring immunosuppressive treatment * any underlying medical condition which, in the principal investigator's opinion, will make the administration of study drug hazardous or obscure the interpretation of adverse events * any concurrent medical condition requiring the use of systemic steroids (use of inhaled or topical steroids is acceptable) * cns metastases, unless previously treated and stable for at least three months * patients who have received prior treatment with mdx-ctla-4