Despite the best surgical efforts, complete removal of mesothelioma is possible in approximately 30% of the patients. When surgical removal is complete, chemotherapy followed by radiation therapy is recommended as an effort to improve control over the cancer and survival. This combination of treatments is called TRIMODALITY therapy. Unfortunately, the chances for the tumor coming back after TRIMODALITY therapy remains high. When surgical removal is not complete or not possible, some patients may receive chemo and/or radiation therapy to achieve control over the cancer, but the chances of tumor to growth again remains high and the chances of long term survival remains low.

PURPOSE: This phase I trial is studying the side effects and best dose of sorafenib when given together with pemetrexed and cisplatin in treating patients with advanced solid tumors.

The purposes of this study are: to determine the feasibility of administering adjuvant cisplatin plus ALIMTA to patients who undergo surgery with heated cisplatin during surgery; to determine the effects (good and bad) of this combined modality approach in patients with mesothelioma; to evaluate cisplatin effects by determining where it goes and how it is excreted in the body from the collection of tissues and cisplatin samples; to collect and analyze discarded samples of mesothelioma tumor during surgery to help determine the genetic make-up of the disease.