PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS: Age: Over 18 Sex: Female Menopausal status: Not specified Performance status: ECOG 0-2 Life expectancy: More than 2 months Hematopoietic: WBC greater than 3,000/mm3 Platelet count greater than 100,000/mm3 No prior clotting disorder unless therapeutically anticoagulated Hepatic: Bilirubin less than the upper limit of normal SGOT or SGPT less than 1.5 times normal Renal: BUN less than 1.5 times normal Creatinine less than 1.5 times normal Cardiovascular: No prior thromboembolism unless therapeutically anticoagulated Other: No symptomatic ascites, pleural effusion or peripheral edema No serious medical or psychiatric illness No prior malignancy other than curatively treated carcinoma in situ of the cervix or skin cancer