A Pilot Study of Active Immunotherapy With HER2/Neu Intracellular Domain (ICD) Protein-Pulsed, Autologous, Cultured Dendritic Cells in Patients With No Evidence of Disease After Standard Treatment for HER2/Neu Expressing Malignancies

Inclusion Criteria

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

- Histologically confirmed advanced malignancy that expresses HER2/neu

- Stage IIA breast cancer with more than 6 positive lymph nodes

- Stage IIB, IIIA, or IIIB breast cancer

- Stage III ovarian cancer

- Lymph node positive gastric cancer

- Metastatic tumor

- No measurable or evaluable disease after standard treatment

- No previously irradiated or newly diagnosed CNS metastases

- Hormone receptor status:

- Not specified

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

Age:

- 18 and over

Menopausal status:

- Not specified

Performance status:

- Karnofsky 80-100%

Life expectancy:

- Greater than 6 months

Hematopoietic:

- WBC at least 3,000/mm^3

- Hemoglobin at least 9 mg/dL

- Platelet count at least 100,000/mm^3

Hepatic:

- Bilirubin less than 2.0 mg/dL

- No hepatic disease, including viral hepatitis

Renal:

- Creatinine less than 2.5 mg/dL

Cardiovascular:

- No New York Heart Association class III or IV heart disease

Pulmonary:

- No asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Immunologic:

- Must have positive intradermal delayed hypersensitivity test for at least 1 of the
following:

- Candida

- Mumps

- Tetanus

- Trichophyton

- Histoplasmin

- No prior autoimmune disease including, but not limited to, the following:

- Inflammatory bowel disease

- Systemic lupus erythematosus

- Ankylosing spondylitis

- Scleroderma

- Multiple sclerosis

Other:

- Not pregnant or nursing

- Negative pregnancy test

- Fertile patients must use effective contraception

- HIV negative

- Hepatitis B surface antigen and hepatitis C antibody negative

- No other concurrent serious chronic or acute illness or infection (including urinary
tract infection)

- No known shellfish or iodine allergy

- No other prior or concurrent malignancy except for nonmelanoma skin cancer, cervical
cancer, or controlled superficial bladder cancer

- No medical or psychological condition that may preclude study

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

Biologic therapy:

- No other concurrent immunotherapy

Chemotherapy:

- At least 4 weeks since prior chemotherapy and recovered

- No concurrent chemotherapy

Endocrine therapy:

- Concurrent hormonal therapy allowed (tamoxifen, raloxifene, toremifene, and all
aromatase inhibitors)

- At least 4 weeks since prior steroid or immunosuppressive therapy (e.g, azathioprine
or cyclosporine)

Radiotherapy:

- Prior radiotherapy allowed except to cranium

- At least 4 weeks since prior radiotherapy and recovered

- At least 12 weeks since prior strontium chloride Sr 89

- No concurrent radiotherapy

Surgery:

- At least 4 weeks since prior surgery and recovered

Other:

- Concurrent bisphosphonates allowed

- No prior hepatitis B immunization