IMC-A12 in Treating Patients With Advanced Liver Cancer

Inclusion Criteria: * Histologically or cytologically confirmed hepatocellular carcinoma * Unresectable, locally advanced, or metastatic disease * Measurable disease, defined as ≥ 1 unidimensionally measurable lesion ≥ 20 mm by conventional techniques OR ≥ 10 mm by spiral CT scan * Child's Pugh score A5, A6, B7, or B8 * No known brain metastases * No history of primary CNS tumors * ECOG performance status (PS) 0-2 OR Karnofsky PS 60-100% * Life expectancy \> 3 months * Leukocytes ≥ 3,000/mcL * Absolute neutrophil count ≥ 1,500/mcL * Platelet count ≥ 75,000/mcL * Total bilirubin ≤ 2 times upper limit of normal (ULN) * AST/ALT ≤ 2.5 times ULN * PT/INR ≤ 1.7 times ULN * Creatinine ≤ 1.5 mg/dL OR creatinine clearance ≥ 60 mL/min * Fasting serum glucose ≤ 125 mg/dL * Not pregnant or nursing * Negative pregnancy test * Fertile patients must use effective contraception * No clinical encephalopathy * No history of allergic reactions attributed to compounds of similar chemical or biologic composition to anti-IGF-1R recombinant monoclonal antibody IMC-A12 * No poorly controlled diabetes mellitus * Patients with a history of diabetes mellitus are eligible provided their blood glucose is within normal range (fasting blood glucose \< 120 mg/dL OR below ULN) and patient is on a stable dietary or therapeutic regimen for this condition * No concurrent uncontrolled illness including, but not limited to, any of the following: * Ongoing or active infection * Symptomatic congestive heart failure * Unstable angina pectoris * Cardiac arrhythmia * Psychiatric illness or social situation that would preclude compliance with study requirements * No history of seizures not well controlled with standard medical therapy * No history of stroke * No history of another primary cancer except for the following: * Curatively resected nonmelanoma skin cancer * Curatively treated carcinoma in situ of the cervix * Other primary solid tumor with no known active disease present that in the opinion of the investigator would not affect treatment outcome * Prior local therapy (i.e., surgery, radiotherapy, hepatic arterial embolization, radiofrequency ablation, percutaneous ethanol injection, or cryoablation) allowed provided the target lesion has not been treated with local therapy and/or the target lesion within the field of local therapy has shown an increase of ≥ 25% in size * At least 4 weeks since prior local therapy * No prior systemic therapy except for sorafenib tosylate * No prior agents targeting the IGF or IGF-1R pathway * No concurrent combination antiretroviral therapy for HIV-positive patients * No other concurrent investigational agents * No concurrent anticancer therapy