Boronophenylalanine-Fructose Complex (BPA-F) and/or Sodium Borocaptate (BSH) Followed By Surgery in Treating Patients With Thyroid Cancer, Head and Neck Cancer, or Liver Metastases

RATIONALE: Diagnostic procedures using boronophenylalanine-fructose complex (BPA-F) and/or sodium borocaptate (BSH) to detect the presence of boron in tumor cells may help determine whether patients who have thyroid cancer, head and neck cancer, or liver metastases may benefit from boron neutron capture therapy.
PURPOSE: This phase I trial is studying the side effects of giving BPA-F and/or BSH before surgery to detect boron uptake in tissues of patients with primary, metastatic, or recurrent thyroid cancer, head and neck cancer, or liver metastases from colorectal cancer.