Sunitinib in Treating Patients With Relapsed or Refractory Esophageal or Gastroesophageal Junction Cancer

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS: * Histologically confirmed esophageal or gastroesophageal junction carcinoma that is not amenable to curative surgery or other curative therapy * Advanced, relapsed or refractory disease * Measurable disease, defined as at least one lesion that can be accurately measured in at least one dimension (longest diameter to be recorded) as ≥ 20 mm by conventional techniques or as ≥ 10 mm by spiral CT scan * No known brain metastases PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS: * ECOG (Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group) performance status 0-1 * Life expectancy \> 12 weeks * WBC ≥ 3,000/μL * Absolute neutrophil count ≥ 1,500/μL * Platelet count ≥ 100,000/μL * Serum calcium ≤ 12.0 mg/dL * Total bilirubin normal * AST (aspartate aminotransferase) and ALT (Alanine Aminotransferase) ≤ 2.5 times upper limit of normal * Creatinine normal OR creatinine clearance ≥ 60 mL/min * Not pregnant or nursing * Negative pregnancy test * Fertile patients must use effective contraception prior to, during, and for 28 days after completion of study treatment * No history of allergic reactions attributed to compounds of similar chemical or biologic composition to sunitinib malate * No ongoing cardiac dysrhythmias ≥ grade 2, atrial fibrillation of any grade, or prolongation of the QTc (corrected QT interval) interval to \> 450 msec (for males) or \> 470 msec (for females) * No hypertension that cannot be controlled by medications (i.e., systolic/diastolic blood pressure \> 150/100 mm Hg despite optimal medical therapy) * No myocardial infarction, cardiac arrhythmia, stable/unstable angina, symptomatic congestive heart failure, or coronary/peripheral artery bypass graft or stenting within the past 12 months * No cerebrovascular accident or transient ischemic attack within the past 12 months * No pulmonary embolism within the past 12 months * No condition that would impair the ability to swallow and retain sunitinib malate tablets (e.g., gastrointestinal tract disease resulting in an inability to take oral medication or a requirement for IV alimentation, prior surgical procedures affecting absorption, or active peptic ulcer disease) * No abdominal fistula, gastrointestinal perforation, or intra-abdominal abscess within the past 28 days * No serious or nonhealing wound, ulcer, or bone fracture * No pre-existing thyroid abnormality that cannot be maintained in the normal range with medication * No concurrent uncontrolled illness including, but not limited to, ongoing or active infection or psychiatric illness/social situation that would limit compliance with study requirements PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY: * Recovered from prior therapy * At least 4 weeks since prior radiotherapy or major surgery * At least 4 weeks since prior chemotherapy (6 weeks for mitomycin C, carmustine, or alkylating agents) * No more than 6 prior courses of an alkylating agent * No more than 450 mg/m² of prior doxorubicin hydrochloride or 900 mg/m² of prior epirubicin hydrochloride * No more than 2 lines of prior therapy in the metastatic setting * No prior anti-VEGF monoclonal antibodies, such as bevacizumab or aflibercept * No prior tyrosine kinase inhibitors with similar targets (e.g., sorafenib tosylate or axitinib) * No other concurrent investigational agents * No concurrent therapeutic doses of coumarin-derivative anticoagulants, such as warfarin * Warfarin at doses of ≤ 2 mg daily are allowed for prophylaxis of thrombosis * Low molecular weight heparin allowed provided PT/INR (Prothrombin time and international normalized ratio) is ≤ 1.5 * No concurrent combination antiretroviral therapy for HIV-positive patients * No concurrent agents with proarrhythmic potential (e.g., terfenadine, quinidine, procainamide, disopyramide, sotalol, probucol, bepridil, haloperidol, risperidone, indapamide, and flecainide)