Pazopanib Hydrochloride in Treating Patients With Advanced or Progressive Malignant Pheochromocytoma or Paraganglioma

Alkaline phosphatase =\< 2.5 x ULN

Creatinine =\< 1.5 mg/dL (133 umol/L) or within normal institutional limits OR creatinine clearance \>= 50 mL/min/1.73m\^2 for subjects with creatinine levels about institutional normal

Urine protein/creatinine ratio =\< 1 OR 24-hour urine \< 1 gram

Prothrombin time (PT)/international normalized ratio (INR)/partial thromboplastin time (PTT) =\< 1.2 x ULN unless a subject is receiving Coumadin and has stable INR which is in range for the desired level of anticoagulation

Blood pressure (BP) \< 140 mmHg (systolic) and \< 90 mmHg (diastolic); initiation or adjustment of BP medication is permitted prior to registration provided that the average of three BP readings at a visit prior to registration is \< 140/90 mmHg

* NOTE: All patients with secretory pheochromocytomas or paragangliomas are required to: 1) be evaluated in consultation by a hypertension specialist (at the registering institution) with experience in the management of hypertension in the setting of catecholamine-secreting tumors (usually an endocrinologist, nephrologist, or a cardiologist), and in the setting of hormone-associated hypertension 2) receive alpha- and beta-adrenergic blockade for at least 7 days prior to initiation of pazopanib (GW786034); the hypertension specialist of record for each patient should be committed to following the patient during the clinical study with evaluation by said specialist required at all run-in cycle evaluations (cycles 1 and 2) and also after the first continuous dosing cycle (cycle 3) and thereafter on an as needed basis

Negative serum pregnancy test done =\< 7 days prior to registration, for women of childbearing potential only

Ability to understand and the willingness to sign a written informed consent document

Willingness to donate blood and tissue for correlative marker studies

Any of the following:

* Pregnant women

* Nursing women

* Men or women of childbearing potential who are unwilling to employ adequate contraception NOTE: breastfeeding should be discontinued if the mother is treated with pazopanib (GW786034)

Any of the following:

* Chemotherapy/systemic therapy =\< 4 weeks prior to registration

* Radiotherapy =\< 4 weeks prior to registration

* Surgery =\< 4 weeks prior to registration

* Nitrosoureas or mitomycin C =\< 6 weeks prior to registration

* Those who have not recovered from adverse events due to agents administered more than 4 weeks earlier NOTE: Concurrent therapy with octreotide is allowed providing that tumor progression on this therapy has been demonstrated; concurrent therapy with bisphosphonates (e.g. zoledronic acid) or denosumab is also allowed.

NOTE: An unlimited number of prior chemotherapeutic or biologic therapies for malignant pheochromocytoma or paraganglioma is permitted; this includes prior anti-angiogenesis therapies such as tyrosine kinase inhibitors

Any other ongoing investigational agents

History of allergic reactions attributed to compounds of similar chemical or biologic composition to pazopanib (GW786034) or other agents used in the study

Any of the following:

* Corrected QT (QTc) prolongation (defined as a QTc interval \>= 500 msecs)

* Left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) \< institutional lower limit of normal (LLN)

* Frequent ventricular ectopy

* Evidence of ongoing myocardial ischemia

Receiving prohibited cytochrome P450 (CYP) interactive concomitant medications within 7 days prior to registration

Any condition (e.g., gastrointestinal tract disease resulting in an inability to take oral medication or a requirement for intravenous (IV) alimentation, prior surgical procedures affecting absorption, or active peptic ulcer disease) that impairs their ability to swallow and retain pazopanib (GW786034)

Receiving any medications or substances with risk of torsades de pointes; note: medications or substances with risk of torsades de pointes are prohibited; medications or substances with possible or conditional risk of torsades de pointes may be used while on study with extreme caution and careful monitoring; patients receiving these later cautionary agents must be monitored serially with electrocardiogram (ECG) weekly during the run-in and first cycle of therapy and at each evaluation thereafter NOTE: These medications should be discontinued or replaced with drugs that do not carry these risks, if possible

Any of the following conditions:

* Active peptic ulcer disease

* Known intraluminal bowel metastatic lesions

* Inflammatory bowel disease (e.g., ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease) or other gastrointestinal conditions which increase the risk of perforation

* History of new abdominal fistula, gastrointestinal perforation or intra-abdominal abscess =\< 84 days prior to registration; enrollment of patients with chronic/canalized fistulous tracts (present for \> 84 days) is allowed

* Serious or non-healing wound, ulcer, or bone fracture

* History of familial QTc prolongation syndrome

Any of the following conditions =\< 185 days prior to registration:

* Cerebrovascular accident (CVA) or transient ischemic attack (TIA)

* Cardiac arrhythmia

* Admission for unstable angina

* Cardiac angioplasty or stenting

* Coronary artery bypass graft surgery

* Pulmonary embolism, untreated deep venous thrombosis (DVT) or DVT which has been treated with therapeutic anticoagulation \< 42 days

* Arterial thrombosis

* Symptomatic peripheral vascular disease

* Class III or IV heart failure as defined by the New York Heart Association (NYHA) functional classification system

Hemoptysis in excess of 2.5 mL (1/2 teaspoon) =\< 60 days prior to registration

Any of the following:

* Known active and/or untreated brain metastases

* Brain metastases requiring ongoing therapy (e.g. corticosteroids)

Uncontrolled intercurrent illness including, but not limited to, ongoing or active infection or psychiatric illness/social situations that would limit compliance with study requirements

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive patients on combination antiretroviral therapy

Require heparin other than low-molecular weight heparin

Prior use of pazopanib (GW786034)

What this study is about