AZD2171 in Treating Patients With Refractory Metastatic Kidney Cancer

Inclusion Criteria: * Histologically or cytologically confirmed clear cell renal cell cancer * Must be predominantly metastatic disease * Refractory disease * Measurable disease, defined as ≥ 1 unidimensionally measurable lesion ≥ 20 mmby conventional techniques or ≥ 10 mm by spiral CT scan * No known brain metastases * ECOG performance status 0-2 * Karnofsky 60-100% * WBC ≥ 3,000/mm\^3 * Absolute neutrophil count ≥ 1,500/mm\^3 * Platelet count ≥ 100,000/mm\^3 * Hemoglobin ≥ 8.0 g/dL * AST and ALT ≤ 2.5 times upper limit of normal (ULN) * Bilirubin normal * Creatinine normal OR creatinine clearance \> 60 mL/min * Blood pressure \< 140/90 mm Hg on 2 separate occasions not more than 6 weeks prior to enrollment and not less than 24 hours apart (stable antihypertensive regimen allowed) * Mean QTc ≤ 470 msec (with Bazett's correction) * Less than +1 proteinuria on two consecutive dipsticks taken no less than 1 week apart * Not pregnant or nursing * Negative pregnancy test * Fertile patients must use effective contraception * No history of familial long QT syndrome * No cardiac arrhythmia * No unstable angina pectoris * No symptomatic congestive heart failure * No New York Heart Association class III or IV disease * No ongoing or active infection * No hypertension * No other uncontrolled intercurrent illness * No history of allergic reactions attributed to compounds of similar chemical or biologic composition to AZD2171 * No psychiatric illness or social situations that would limit compliance with study requirements * See Disease Characteristics * More than 4 weeks since prior radiotherapy and recovered * More than 4 weeks since prior major surgery and recovered * More than 4 weeks since prior chemotherapy (6 weeks for nitrosoureas or mitomycin C) and recovered * More than 30 days since other prior investigational agents * No prior therapy with vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) binding agents or VEGF receptor (VEGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitors * No more than 1 prior nonVEGF-directed systemic therapy for this disease * No concurrent medication that may markedly affect renal function (e.g., vancomycin, amphotericin, ibuprofen, pentamidine) * No combination antiretroviral therapy for HIV-positive patients * No concurrent hematopoietic growth factors except epoetin alfa and bisphosphonates * No concurrent hormones or other chemotherapeutic agents except for steroids given for adrenal failure and hormones administered for nondisease-related conditions (e.g. insulin for diabetes) * No concurrent palliative or therapeutic radiation therapy * No concurrent drugs or biologics with proarrhythmic potential * No other concurrent investigational or commercial agents or therapies to treat the patient's malignancy