Intervention: Tivantinib
Trial phase: Phase 2
SMILES: O=C1NC(=O)[C@@H](c2cn3c4c(cccc24)CCC3)[C@@H]1c1c[nH]c2ccccc12
Sex: All
Age groups: Adult | Older Adult
Healthy volunteers: No
Participants at risk: 22
Group description: Patients receive tivantinib PO BID on days 1-21. Courses repeat every 21 days in the absence of disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. Patients undergo blood sample collection at baseline and periodically during study for c-Met expression, relevant markers (HGF and VEGF), PTEN loss, and PI3K mutation analysis by FISH and IHC. Archived tumor tissue samples are also analyzed.

Laboratory Biomarker Analysis: Correlative studies

Tivantinib: Given PO
Eligibility criteria:
Inclusion Criteria:

Participants must have histologically or cytologically confirmed invasive breast cancer, with recurrent or metastatic disease; participants without pathologic or cytologic confirmation of metastatic disease should have unequivocal evidence of metastasis from physical examination or radiologic evaluation
Participants must have measurable disease, defined as at least one lesion that can be accurately measured in at least one dimension (longest diameter to be recorded for non-nodal lesions and short axis for nodal lesions) as >= 20 mm with conventional techniques or as >= 10 mm with spiral computed tomography (CT) scan

Participants must have recent evidence of progressive disease

Participants must have received 1-3 prior chemotherapeutic regimens for metastatic breast cancer and must have been off treatment with chemotherapy for at least 14 days before enrollment in the study
Participants must have discontinued all biologic therapy (including vaccines) at least 14 days before enrollment in the study
Participants must have discontinued any investigational therapy at least 14 days before enrollment in the study

Participants may have received prior radiation therapy in either the metastatic or early-stage setting

Radiation therapy must be completed at least 14 days before enrollment in the study
Participant must not have received radiation to > 25% of his or her bone marrow within 30 days of starting study treatment
Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status =< 2 (Karnofsky >= 60%)
Hemoglobin >= 9.0 g/dL
Absolute neutrophil count >= 1,500/mcL
Platelets >= 100,000/mcL
Total bilirubin =< 1.5 times upper limit of normal (ULN)
Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) (serum glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase [SGOT])/alanine aminotransferase (ALT) (serum glutamic pyruvate transaminase [SGPT]) =< 2.5 times institutional ULN; for participants with documented liver metastases, AST/ALT =< 5.0 times ULN
Serum creatinine =< 1.5 times ULN OR creatinine clearance >= 60 mL/min/1.73 m^2 for participants with creatinine levels above institutional normal

Either the primary tumor and/or the metastasis must be triple-negative; the invasive tumor must be hormone-receptor poor, defined as estrogen-receptor negative (ER-) and progesterone-receptor negative (PR-), or staining < 10% by immunohistochemistry (IHC)

Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) status: the invasive tumor must be HER2-negative, defined as 0 or 1+ by IHC, or FISH < 2.0
Women of child-bearing potential and men must agree to use adequate contraception (hormonal or barrier method of birth control; abstinence) during the study and for 90 days after the last investigational drug dose received
Female subjects of childbearing potential must have a negative serum pregnancy test within 21 days of cycle 1 day 1
Participants on bisphosphonates may continue receiving bisphosphonate therapy during study treatment; bisphosphonate therapy may also be initiated on study treatment if needed
Confirmed availability of formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tumor tissue
Ability to understand and the willingness to sign a written informed consent document

Exclusion Criteria:

Participants who have received chemotherapy, biologic, investigational, or radiotherapy within 14 days prior to entering the study
Participants who are receiving any other investigational agents

Known brain metastases that are untreated, symptomatic, or require therapy to control symptoms

Participants with a history of treated central nervous system (CNS) metastases are eligible

Treated brain metastases are defined as those having no evidence of progression or hemorrhage for >= 2 months after treatment, and no ongoing requirement for corticosteroids, as ascertained by clinical examination and brain imaging (magnetic resonance imaging or computed tomography [CT] scan) during the screening period
Treatment for brain metastases may include whole-brain radiotherapy, radiosurgery, or a combination as deemed appropriate by the treating physician
Participants may be taking anti-convulsant medications, which must be non-enzyme-inducing anti-epileptic drugs
History of allergic reactions attributed to compounds of similar chemical or biologic composition to ARQ 197
History of congestive heart failure defined as Class II to IV per New York Heart Association (NYHA) classification; active coronary artery disease (CAD); clinically significant bradycardia or other uncontrolled, cardiac arrhythmia defined as >= grade 3 according to National Cancer Institute (NCI) Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE), version 4.0, or uncontrolled hypertension; myocardial infarction occurring within 6 months prior to study entry (myocardial infarction occurring > 6 months prior to study entry is permitted)
Uncontrolled intercurrent illness including, but not limited to, ongoing or active infection, symptomatic congestive heart failure, unstable angina pectoris, cardiac arrhythmia, or psychiatric illness/social situations that would limit compliance with study requirements
Pregnant women are excluded from this study
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive participants on combination antiretroviral therapy are ineligible