RO4929097 Before Surgery in Treating Patients With Pancreatic Cancer

Inclusion Criteria: * Histologically or cytologically confirmed pancreatic adenocarcinoma * T1-3, N0-1, and M0 disease * Surgically resectable disease confirmed by a surgeon experienced in pancreatic surgery * No borderline resectable disease defined as any of the following: * Tumors with severe unilateral or bilateral SMV/portal involvement impingement * Abutment (or) encasement of hepatic artery * SMA or celiac encasement (or) presence of SMV occlusion by tumor * No metastatic disease * ECOG performance status 0-1 * Life expectancy \> 6 months * WBC ≥ 3,000/mm³ * ANC ≥ 1,500/mm³ * Platelet count ≥ 100,000/mm³ * Hemoglobin ≥ 9 g/dL * Total bilirubin ≤ 2 mg/dL * AST and ALT ≤ 2.5 times upper limit of normal * Creatinine ≤ 2 mg/dL * Calcium, magnesium, phosphorous, and potassium normal * Negative pregnancy test * Not pregnant or nursing * Fertile patients must use effective barrier-method contraception 4 weeks before, during, and for ≥ 12 months after completion of treatment * Able to swallow tablets * No malabsorption syndrome or other condition that would interfere with intestinal absorption * No history of allergic reactions attributed to compounds of similar chemical or biologic composition to gamma-secretase inhibitor RO4929097 or other agents used in the study * No uncontrolled hypocalcemia, hypomagnesemia, hyponatremia, hypophosphatemia, or hypokalemia despite adequate electrolyte supplementation * Grade 1 hyponatremia with sodium ≤ 131 mg/dL is permissible * No uncontrolled intercurrent illness including, but not limited to, any of the following: * Ongoing or active infection * Symptomatic congestive heart failure * Unstable angina pectoris * Cardiac arrhythmia other than chronic * Stable atrial fibrillation * Psychiatric illness/social situations that would limit compliance with study requirements * No baseline QTcF \> 450 msec (male) or QTcF \> 470 msec (female) * Patients with a prior cancer with evidence of active cancer are excluded from this study * Patients with a prior cancer are permitted to enter this study as long as there is no documented evidence of active malignancy * No uncontrolled electrolyte abnormalities including hypocalcemia, hypomagnesemia, and hypokalemia * No symptomatic congestive heart failure, unstable angina pectoris, and a history of torsades de pointes or other significant cardiac arrhythmias * No requirement for antiarrhythmics or other medications known to prolong QTc * No other concurrent anticancer agents or therapies * Recovered to \< grade 2 toxicity related to prior therapy * No prior chemotherapy or radiotherapy for pancreatic cancer * No other concurrent investigational agents * No concurrent medications with narrow therapeutic indices that are metabolized by cytochrome P450 (CYP450), including warfarin sodium (Coumadin®), ketoconazole, or grapefruit juice * No concurrent strong inducers or inhibitors of CYP3A4 * No concurrent combination antiretroviral therapy for HIV-positive patients