OUTLINE: This is a dose escalation study of paclitaxel. Patients receive amifostine IV over 5 minutes or less on day 0, followed by paclitaxel IV over 1 hour once a week for 6 weeks followed by 2 weeks of rest. Patients with complete or partial response may receive additional courses of therapy. Cohorts of 3-5 patients each receive increasing doses of paclitaxel. The maximum tolerated dose is defined as the dose level prior to the cohort at which 1 of 3-5 patients experience dose limiting toxicity.