CCI-779 in Treating Patients With Relapsed or Refractory Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

Inclusion Criteria: Diagnosis of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) Relapsed, refractory, or transformed disease Relapsed disease defined as symptomatic loss of a prior partial or complete response to a regimen containing a purine analog and/or a monoclonal antibody AND evidence of disease progression Primary resistant disease defined as failure to achieve an objective response to a regimen containing a purine analog and/or a monoclonal antibody Transformed CLL (Richters transformation), must meet both of the following criteria: Histologically confirmed lymphoma Measurable disease No CNS disease Performance status - ECOG 0-2 Bilirubin ≤ 2 mg/dL (unless elevated due to Gilbert's disease) SGOT and SGPT < 3 times upper limit of normal Creatinine ≤ 2 mg/dL (unless due to organ leukemic involvement) No symptomatic congestive heart failure No unstable angina pectoris No cardiac arrhythmia Not pregnant or nursing Negative pregnancy test Fertile patients must use effective contraception HIV-positive patients allowed provide CD4 counts are normal and no AIDS-defining disease is present No history of allergic reactions attributed to compounds of similar chemical or biological composition to CCI-779 No ongoing or active infection No psychiatric illness or social situation that would preclude study compliance No other concurrent uncontrolled illness See Disease Characteristics No concurrent prophylactic hematopoietic colony-stimulating factors See Disease Characteristics More than 2 weeks since prior cytotoxic chemotherapy and recovered More than 2 weeks since prior radiotherapy and recovered No other concurrent investigational or antitumor agents No other concurrent cytotoxic agents No concurrent combination antiretroviral therapy for HIV-positive patients