Bexarotene, Tretinoin, and Combination Chemotherapy in Treating Patients With Stage III or Stage IV Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

OBJECTIVES: Primary * Evaluate the efficacy of bexarotene at a dose of 375 mg daily for 4 days with tretinoin also for the same 3 days with chemotherapy in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer. * Evaluate the safety and tolerability of this drug combination. OUTLINE: Patients will receive oral bexarotene 375 mg once daily and oral tretinoin 50 mg twice daily on days 1-3. Patients also receive combination chemotherapy comprising cisplatin or carboplatin with docetaxel and capecitabine orally or intravenously on days 1-3. Treatment repeats every 14 days for up to 12 courses in the absence of disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. After completion of study treatment, patients will be followed every 4 weeks.