Oxaliplatin With or Without Gefitinib in Treating Patients With Metastatic or Locally Recurrent Colorectal Cancer

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Biological therapies such as gefitinib may interfere with the growth of the tumor cells and slow the growth of colorectal cancer. Combining chemotherapy with gefitinib may kill more tumor cells.
PURPOSE: Phase I/II trial to compare the effectiveness of chemotherapy with or without gefitinib in treating patients who have metastatic or locally recurrent colorectal cancer.