DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

• Histologically confirmed clear cell renal cell carcinoma

  • Metastatic or unresectable disease
• Measurable disease, defined as at least 1 unidimensionally measurable lesion ≥ 20 mm by conventional techniques or ≥ 10 mm by spiral CT scan

• Must have received prior sunitinib or sorafenib (discontinued for disease progression or unacceptable toxicity) OR be ineligible to receive sunitinib or sorafenib

  • Patients who discontinued sunitinib or sorafenib for life-threatening toxicities that are also known to occur with vandetanib (i.e., skin, gastrointestinal toxicities, or bowel perforation) are not eligible
• Must have failed, be ineligible to receive, or decline treatment with high-dose aldesleukin
• No von Hippel-Lindau disease
• No known brain metastases except when adequately treated ≥ 6 months prior to study entry and no evidence of recurrence

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

• ECOG performance status 0-2
• Life expectancy > 3 months
• WBC ≥ 3,000/mm³
• ANC ≥ 1,500/mm³
• Platelet count ≥ 100,000/mm³
• Serum creatinine ≤ 1.5 times upper limit of normal (ULN) or creatinine clearance ≥ 50 mL/min
• AST and ALT < 2.5 times ULN
• Total bilirubin < 1.5 times ULN (3 times ULN for patients with Gilbert disease)
• Alkaline phosphatase ≤ 2.5 times ULN (5 times ULN if liver metastases are present)
• Potassium concentration ≥ 4.0 mEq/L

• Calcium (ionized calcium or adjusted for albumin) and magnesium concentrations normal

  • Optimal supplementation/correction allowed
• Not pregnant or nursing
• Negative pregnancy test
• Fertile patients must use effective contraception during and for at least 3 months after completion of study treatment
• No prior malignancy of other histology except carcinoma in situ of the cervix or adequately treated basal cell or squamous cell carcinoma of the skin, or any other malignancy for which the patient has not required active treatment for > 3 years

• No clinically significant cardiac event within the past 3 months, including any of the following:

  • Symptomatic congestive heart failure
  • Myocardial infarction
  • Angina
• No cardiac disease that, in the opinion of the principal investigator, increases the risk of ventricular arrhythmia

• No history of clinically significant cardiac arrhythmia that is symptomatic or requires treatment (CTCAE grade 3), including any of the following:

  • Multifocal premature ventricular contraction (PVC)
  • Bigeminy
  • Trigeminy
  • Ventricular tachycardia
  • Asymptomatic sustained ventricular tachycardia
• No uncontrolled atrial fibrillation (atrial fibrillation controlled on medication is allowed)
• No left bundle-branch block
• No history of QTc prolongation while taking other medications that required discontinuation of that medication
• No congenital long QT syndrome or first-degree relative with unexplained sudden death under the age of 40

• No QTc with Bazett's correction unmeasurable or ≥ 480 msec on screening ECG OR > 480 msec on average of 3 ECGs taken 24 hours apart

  • Patients who are receiving a drug that has a risk of QTc prolongation are not eligible if QTc is ≥ 460 msec
• LVEF ≥ 45% by MUGA or ECHO
• No hypertension (i.e., systolic blood pressure [BP] > 150 mm Hg or diastolic BP > 100 mm Hg) despite medical therapy

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

  • Ongoing or active infection
  • Unstable angina pectoris
  • Cardiac arrhythmia
  • Psychiatric illness or social situations that would limit compliance with study requirement
• No active diarrhea that may affect the ability of the patient to absorb study drug or tolerate further diarrhea
• No hypersensitivity to vandetanib or its excipients

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

• See Disease Characteristics
• Recovered from acute toxicity of prior therapy (to ≤ grade 1 CTCAE v3.0)
• At least 4 weeks since prior major surgery and surgical incision has healed
• At least 30 days since prior and no other concurrent investigational agents
• No concurrent 5HT-3 antagonists
• No concurrent drugs that could induce Torsades de pointes
• No concurrent antiretroviral therapy for HIV-positive patients
• No concurrent potent inducers of CYP3A4 function (e.g., rifampin, rifabutin, phenytoin, carbamazepine, or barbiturates such as phenobarbital or Hypericum perforatum [St. John wort])
• No blood donation during and for 3 months after the last dose of study drug