DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

• Diagnosis of metastatic melanoma

  • No local/regional disease amenable to surgical resection
• Measurable disease

• Progressive disease while on standard therapy

  • Prior interleukin-2 allowed but not required
• No extensive lung disease involving > 15% of the lung by CT scan

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

• Life expectancy > 3 months
• ECOG performance status 0-2
• Creatinine ≤ 1.6 mg/dL
• Bilirubin ≤ 2.0 mg/dL (< 3.0 mg/dL for patients with Gilbert's syndrome)
• WBC ≥ 3,000/mm³
• Platelet count ≥ 90,000/mm³
• Albumin > 2.5 g/dL
• AST/ALT < 2.5 times upper limit of normal
• Not pregnant or nursing
• Negative pregnancy test
• Fertile patients must use effective contraception

• No concurrent uncontrolled illness including, but not limited to, any of the following:

  • Ongoing or active infection
  • Ongoing or active cardiac disease (i.e., symptomatic congestive heart failure, unstable angina pectoris, or cardiac arrhythmia)
  • Psychiatric illness or social situation that would limit study compliance
• Patients who are ≥ 50 years of age or who have a history of EKG abnormalities or symptoms of cardiac ischemia or arrhythmias must have a normal cardiac stress test AND LVEF ≥ 45% by echocardiogram
• Hepatitis B surface antigen and hepatitis C antibody negative
• HIV negative
• No autoimmune disease or immunodeficiency
• No other concurrent malignancies
• Human antimurine antibody (HAMA) level ≤ 1 μg/mL
• Willing to undergo leukapheresis

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

• See Disease Characteristics
• More than 3 weeks since prior and no other concurrent systemic therapy for melanoma
• No prior RFT5-dgA immunotoxin
• No prior radiotherapy, including radiotherapy to the lungs, except for localized soft tissue radiotherapy
• No concurrent systemic steroid therapy
• No concurrent chronic anticoagulants