AT9283 in Children and Adolescents With Relapsed and Refractory Solid Tumors

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS: * Histologically confirmed solid tumor meeting 1 of the following criteria: * Refractory to conventional treatment * Disease for which no conventional therapy exists * Patients with CNS tumors must be on a stable or decreasing dose of dexamethasone for ≥ 1 week before study entry PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS: * WHO performance status (PS) 0-2 OR Lansky Play PS 70-100% (\> 50% is acceptable if it is due to a stable neurological deficit or CNS tumor) * Life expectancy ≥ 12 weeks * ANC ≥ 1,000/mm\^3 * Platelet count ≥ 100,000/mm\^3 * Hemoglobin ≥ 9.0 g/dL * Serum bilirubin \< 1.5 times upper limit of normal (ULN) * Creatinine kinase normal * ALT or AST \< 2.5 times ULN (≤ 5 times ULN if due to tumor) * Creatinine clearance/EDTA-measured GFR ≥ 60 mL/min * Sufficient blood volume to undergo the blood-sampling regimen specified by the protocol that, in the opinion of the investigator, will not jeopardize patient's safety * Not pregnant or nursing * Negative pregnancy test * Fertile patients must use 2 methods of effective contraception 4 weeks before, during, and for 6 months after completion of study therapy * Not at high medical risk because of non-malignant systemic disease, including active uncontrolled infection * Not known to be serologically positive for hepatitis B or C or HIV * Fractional shortening of \> 29% on echocardiogram * LVEF ≥ 50% * No history of allergy or auto-immune disease * No congenital heart disease * No other condition that, in the investigator's opinion, would not make the patient a good candidate for the clinical trial PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY: * See Disease Characteristics * Recovered from prior therapy * More than 4 weeks since prior radiotherapy (except for palliative reasons), endocrine therapy, immunotherapy, or chemotherapy (6 weeks for investigational medicinal products, 2 weeks for vincristine) * More than 3 months since prior autologous stem cell transplantation * No prior allogenic bone marrow transplantation * No prior extensive radiotherapy to \> 25% of bone marrow * No prior Aurora kinase inhibitor * No prior major thoracic or abdominal surgery from which the patient has not yet recovered * No prior or concurrent participation in another interventional clinical trial * Participation in an observational study allowed * No other concurrent anticancer therapy or investigational drugs