Vaccine Therapy With or Without Interleukin-2 in Treating Patients With Metastatic Melanoma

OBJECTIVES: * Determine whether reinfused activated cells alone or in conjunction with high or subcutaneous dose interleukin-2 may result in clinical tumor regression in patients with metastatic melanoma who had previously failed therapy on protocols involving immunization against the gp100 molecule. * Determine the survival of infused cells with antitumor activity in these patients. OUTLINE: This is a salvage regimen. Patients undergo leukopheresis to obtain peripheral blood mononuclear cells or tumor biopsy to obtain tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL). Cells are incubated in the presence of gp209-2M peptide and then harvested and cloned. Patients receive 30-minute IV infusions of these in vitro sensitized cells. Treatment repeats every 2 weeks for 2 courses. An additional cohort of 8 patients receives gp209-2M peptide in Montanide ISA-51 subcutaneously in 2 different sites followed 2 days later by the adoptive transfer of cloned lymphocytes. At 4 to 6 weeks after the treatment courses, patients with stable or regressing disease may be retreated. Patients with disease progression after 2 courses may receive 2 additional courses of cell infusion followed by interleukin-2 (IL-2) on one of two schedules. One cohort of patients receives IL-2 by intravenous bolus over 15 minutes every 8 hours beginning on the day after cell infusion and continuing for up to 5 days of each treatment course. Another cohort receives IL-2 by daily subcutaneous injections on days 1-12 of each course of therapy. If after 12-16 patients have been treated with cloned cells alone initially and responses are inadequate, subsequent patients entered into this study are randomized to receive the cell infusion followed by IL-2 on one of the two described schedules. Patients are followed at 4-6 weeks. PROJECTED ACCRUAL: A total of 91 patients will be accrued for this study over 2 years.