Inclusion Criteria

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

- Histologically confirmed advanced carcinomas of the following types:

- Breast carcinoma that is ineligible for or patient has refused participation in
a higher priority protocol in the following categories:

- Stage II disease with at least 10 involved lymph nodes and no evidence of
disease (NED) following surgery

- Stage III disease rendered surgically NED with or without radiotherapy

- Stage IV disease following partial response (PR) or complete response (CR)
to surgery, chemotherapy, or radiotherapy

- Prior high dose chemotherapy allowed at discretion of investigator

- No chemoresistant disease rendered surgically NED

- Locoregionally recurrent disease within 2 years of breast conservation with
or without chemotherapy

- Stage III/IV ovarian cancer

- PR/CR following debulking surgery and/or chemotherapy

- Ineligible for or refused participation in higher priority protocols

- Primary soft tissue sarcoma with high-grade disease greater than 10 cm or that is
metastatic

- Rendered surgically NED or achieved PR/CR on any chemotherapeutic or
immunotherapeutic regimen

- Ineligible for or refused participation in higher priority protocols

- Malignant melanoma in the following categories:

- Ulcerative primary tumor with any number of completely resected metastatic lymph
nodes

- Stage II disease with more than 4 involved nodes rendered NED

- Stage III disease rendered surgically NED or achieved PR/CR on any
chemotherapeutic or immunotherapeutic regimen

- Osteosarcoma that is ineligible for or refused participation in higher priority
protocols

- Resected primary with less than 50% tumor necrosis on pathologic review

- Metastatic disease rendered surgically NED or PR/CR on any chemotherapeutic,
radiotherapeutic, or immunotherapeutic regimen

- The following diseases rendered surgically NED or that achieved PR/CR on any
chemotherapeutic, radiotherapeutic, or immunotherapeutic regimen also eligible:

- Small cell bone carcinoma

- Metastatic Ewing's sarcoma

- Metastatic gastrointestinal malignancy

- Recurrent Wilms' tumor

- No CNS metastases

- No current histologically confirmed bone marrow metastases

- Prior bone metastases with resolution at time of entry permitted

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

Age:

- Physiologic 18 to 55

Performance status:

- Karnofsky 80%-100%

Hematopoietic:

- Absolute neutrophil count greater than 1,500/mm3

- Platelet count greater than 120,000/mm3

- Hemoglobin greater than 10 g/dL

Hepatic:

- Bilirubin less than 1.5 mg/dL

- AST/ALT less than 3 times normal

Renal:

- Creatinine less than 1.4 mg/dL

- Creatinine clearance at least 70 mL/min

- No history of hemorrhagic cystitis

Cardiovascular:

- Ejection fraction at least 55% by MUGA

- No significant cardiac disease

Pulmonary:

- FEV1 greater than 2 L

- pO2 (room air) greater than 70 mm Hg

- pCO2 (room air) less than 42 mm Hg

- DLCO greater than 60% of predicted

Other:

- No potentially disabling psychosocial history

- No organic or functional CNS dysfunction or other medical problem that would present
party at undue risk

- HIV negative

- Hepatitis B surface antigen negative

- No hearing loss greater than 40 decibels

- No contraindication to the following procedures:

- Collection by apheresis of up to 16 x 10 to the 8th mononuclear cells mobilized
by G-CSF

- Collection of autologous bone marrow, if needed

- No second malignancy except:

- Nonmelanomatous skin cancer

- Carcinoma in situ of the cervix

- Not pregnant or nursing

- Adequate contraception required of fertile patients

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

Biologic therapy:

- See Disease Characteristics

- At least 4 weeks since prior immunotherapy

Chemotherapy:

- See Disease Characteristics

- No more than 3 prior chemotherapy regimens (excluding adjuvant therapy)

- No more than 200 mg per square meter of prior cisplatin

- No more than 800 mg per square meter of prior carboplatin

- No prior exposure to greater than 1,000 mg per square meter of "24-hour paclitaxel
equivalents" (using a 1:1.3 ratio between paclitaxel doses given by 24-hour infusion
and by 3-hour infusion)

- At least 4 weeks since prior chemotherapy

Endocrine therapy:

- Not specified

Radiotherapy:

- No prior radiotherapy to more than 20% of bone marrow

- At least 4 weeks since prior radiotherapy

Surgery:

- See Disease Characteristics