DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

• Diagnosed with adenocarcinoma of the colon or rectum
• Metastatic disease or locally recurrent disease that is not amenable to surgical resection with curative intent
• Measurable disease, defined as ≥ 1 unidimensionally measurable lesion on a CT scan as defined by RECIST criteria
• Must have received 1 prior chemotherapy regimen containing irinotecan or a fluoropyrimidine for locally recurrent or metastatic disease AND have experienced progressive disease during or following the prior chemotherapy treatment

• No symptomatic or untreated brain or meningeal metastases

  • Must have CT scan if there is clinical suspicion of CNS
  • Patients with treated brain metastases that are radiographically or clinically stable for ≥ 4 weeks after therapy and have no evidence of cavitation or hemorrhage in the brain lesion are eligible provided that they are asymptomatic and do not require corticosteroids

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

• ECOG performance status 0-1
• ANC ≥ 1,500/mm³
• Platelets ≥ 100,000/mm³
• Hemoglobin ≥ 9.0 g/dL
• Serum creatinine ≤ 2.0 mg/dL
• AST and ALT ≤ 1.5 times upper limit of normal (ULN) (≤ 5.0 times ULN if liver metastases present)
• Bilirubin ≤ 1.5 mg/dL
• PTT ≤ 1.5 times ULN
• INR ≤ 1.5
• Not pregnant or nursing
• Negative pregnancy test
• Fertile patients must use effective contraception during and for up to 2 months after completion of therapy
• No history of hypersensitivity to recombinant murine monoclonal antibodies, oxaliplatin, other platinum-containing compounds, fluorouracil, or leucovorin calcium
• Proteinuria CTC grade ≤ 1 at baseline as measured by a urine protein:creatinine ratio of ≤ 1 by a 24-hour urine collection
• No history of or concurrent clinically significant cancer-related events of bleeding (e.g., gross hemoptysis defined as bright red blood of ≤ ½ teaspoon or 2.5 mL per episode within the past 3 months) or other clinically significant signs of bleeding
• No symptomatic or persistent, uncontrolled hypertension, defined as diastolic blood pressure (BP) > 100 mm Hg or systolic BP > 150 mm Hg
• No history of myocardial infarction, stroke, or transient ischemic attack within the past 6 months
• No history of abdominal fistula or gastrointestinal perforation within the past 6 months
• No documented left ventricular ejection fraction < 50%
• No known autoimmune disease with renal involvement (e.g., lupus)

• No clinically significant uncontrolled condition(s) including, but not limited to, any of the following:

  • Active uncontrolled infection
  • Symptomatic congestive heart failure
  • Unstable angina pectoris or cardiac arrhythmia
  • History of adrenal insufficiency
  • Psychiatric illness/social situation that would limit compliance with study requirements
• No active ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease, celiac disease, or any other conditions that interfere with absorption
• No other active malignancy within the past 5 years except cervical cancer in situ, in situ carcinoma of the bladder, or nonmelanoma carcinoma of the skin
• No medical condition that, in the opinion of the study investigator, places patients at an unacceptably high risk for toxicities

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

• See Disease Characteristics
• Recovered to ≤ grade 1 clinically significant adverse effects/toxicities of the previous therapy
• More than 28 days since prior major surgery
• More than 21 days since prior cytotoxic chemotherapy (i.e., alkylating agents, microtubule inhibitors, anti-metabolites)

• More than 21 days since prior and no concurrent non-cytotoxic anticancer therapy (e.g., investigational agents, immunotherapy, anticancer traditional Chinese medicine/herbal remedies, hormonal therapy, targeted agents [i.e., erlotinib hydrochloride, imatinib mesylate], or biologic therapy)

  • Concurrent hormone replacement therapy or hormonal contraceptives allowed
• More than 14 days since prior and no concurrent radiotherapy
• At least 1 week since prior steroids
• Prior adjuvant treatment for colorectal cancer allowed
• No prior treatment with bevacizumab or a tyrosine kinase inhibitor targeting VEGF or PDGF
• No prior treatment for colorectal cancer with oxaliplatin in the metastatic setting
• No concurrent combination antiretroviral therapy for HIV

• No concurrent therapeutic anticoagulation therapy

  • Low-dose anticoagulation (e.g., warfarin) for catheter coagulation prophylaxis allowed