Sunitinib in Treating Patients With Metastatic Germ Cell Tumors That Have Relapsed or Not Responded to Treatment

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS: * Histologically confirmed seminoma or nonseminoma germ cell tumors (GCT) * Refractory or relapsed disease * Metastatic disease * Progressive disease after prior cisplatin-based chemotherapy AND meets 1 of the following criteria for salvage therapy: * Not a candidate for potentially curative therapy * Received prior high-dose chemotherapy regimens * Declines potentially curative therapy (mediastinal GCT or primary refractory GCT) * Measurable disease\*, defined as 1 of the following: * At least 1 unidimensionally measurable lesion ≥ 20 mm by conventional techniques OR ≥ 10 mm by spiral CT scan * Elevation of alpha-fetoprotein \> 15 ng/mL and/or elevation of human chorionic gonadotropin \> 2.2 mIU/L * NOTE: \*Patients with radiographically measurable disease only must have ≥ 1 site that has not undergone prior irradiation PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS: * Karnofsky performance status 70-100% * Absolute neutrophil count ≥ 1,500/mm³ * Platelet count ≥ 100,000/mm³ * Hemoglobin ≥ 9.0 g/dL * Creatinine ≤ 1.5 times upper limit of normal (ULN) * Bilirubin ≤ 1.5 times ULN * AST and ALT ≤ 2.5 times ULN (unless elevated liver function abnormalities due to underlying malignancy) * LVEF ≥ 50% by MUGA * No grade 3 hemorrhage within the past 4 weeks * None of the following within the past 6 months: * Myocardial infarction * Severe or unstable angina * Coronary or peripheral artery bypass graft * Symptomatic congestive heart failure * Cerebrov…