Vaccine Therapy in Treating Patients With Stage IV Head and Neck Cancer

Inclusion criteria

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS: * Histologically confirmed stage IV squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity or oropharynx or nodal or dermal metastases for which current available treatment is not likely to offer a survival advantage or result in significant palliation * Unresectable locoregional recurrence after maximum radiotherapy OR * Local disease with unresectable distant metastases involving: * Base of skull * Prevertebral fascia * Deep neck muscles * Carotid artery (requiring resection) * Nasopharynx and/or pterygoid muscles * Ineligible to receive radiotherapy to head and neck during study * Primary intraoral lesions must be measurable and accessible to intralesional injections * No metastatic brain lesions, cerebral metastasis, or leptomeningeal disease PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS: Age: * 18 and over Performance status: * Zubrod 0-2 Life expectancy: * At least 2 months Hematopoietic: * Absolute neutrophil count greater than 1,000/mm\^3 * Platelet count greater than 100,000/mm\^3 * Hemoglobin greater than 8 g/dL Hepatic: * Bilirubin less than 1.5 mg/dL * AST/ALT less than 4 times upper limit of normal (ULN) * PT/PTT less than 1.5 times ULN Renal: * Creatinine less than 2.0 mg/dL OR * Creatinine clearance greater than 60 mL/min Cardiovascular: * No evidence of congestive heart failure * No serious cardiac dysrhythmia * No evidence of recent prior myocardial infarction on EKG * No clinical coronary artery disease Neurologic: * No history of seizures or concurrent seizure disorder * No evidence of encephalitis, multiple sclerosis, or other structural brain lesion(s) by clinical or radiological evaluation Immunologic: * No risk of immune system compromise * HIV negative * No hypersensitivity to eggs * No significant history of allergies (e.g., anaphylaxis or angioedema) Other: * No active or chronic infection * No other serious concurrent medical illness * No other malignancy unless previously treated with curative intent and no evidence of persistent or recurrent disease * Not pregnant or nursing * Negative pregnancy test * Fertile patients must use effective contraception PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY: Biologic therapy: * At least 4 weeks since prior immunotherapy and recovered Chemotherapy: * No more than 2 prior chemotherapy regimens * At least 4 weeks since prior chemotherapy and recovered Endocrine therapy: * At least 4 weeks since prior systemic corticosteroids * No concurrent systemic corticosteroids Radiotherapy: * See Disease Characteristics * At least 4 weeks since prior radiotherapy and recovered * No prior radiotherapy to more than 50% of nodal groups Surgery: * More than 4 weeks since prior surgery for primary or metastatic lesions and recovered * No prior splenectomy