506u78 in treating patients with recurrent or refractory non-hodgkin's lymphoma or t-cell lymphoma

Conditions: Angioimmunoblastic T-cell Lymphoma; Extranodal Marginal Zone B-cell Lymphoma of Mucosa-associated Lymphoid Tissue; Nodal Marginal Zone B-cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult T-cell Leukemia/Lymphoma; Recurrent Grade 1 Follicular Lymphoma; Recurrent Grade 2 Follicular Lymphoma; Recurrent Marginal Zone Lymphoma; Recurrent Small Lymphocytic Lymphoma; Splenic Marginal Zone Lymphoma; Waldenström Macroglobulinemia

Summary: phase ii trial to study the effectiveness of 506u78 in treating patients who have recurrent or refractory non-hodgkin's lymphoma or t-cell lymphoma. drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop cancer cells from dividing so they stop growing or die

objectives: i. determine the response rate, failure-free survival, and progression-free survival of patients with recurrent or refractory indolent b-cell non-hodgkin's lymphoma or peripheral t-cell lymphoma when treated with 506u78. ii. assess the pharmacokinetics and toxicity of this treatment in these patients. outline: patients receive 506u78 iv over 2 hours on days 1, 3, and 5. treatment repeats every 28 days for up to 6 courses in the absence of disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. patients are followed every 3 months.

Eligibility criteria:
inclusion criteria: * patients with relapsed or refractory indolent b-cell non-hodgkin's lymphoma or peripheral t-cell lymphoma * indolent b-cell lymphoma will include waldenström's macroglobulinemia, lymphoplasmacytoid lymphoma small lymphocytic lymphoma, marginal zone lymphoma, and follicular small cleaved-cell or mixed cell lymphoma; patients with prior or concurrent evidence of transformation to large cell lymphoma or with follicular large cell lymphoma are ineligible * peripheral t-cell lymphoma will include all entities described in the real classification; patients with b-cell alcl are ineligible; patients with cutaneous t-cell lymphoma and all its variants and/or histologic transformation of cutaneous t-cell lymphoma are not eligible for this protocol, because they will be instead eligible for a separate protocol * relapsed peripheral t-cell lymphomas include all those achieving and maintaining a complete or partial response during initial therapy; refractory includes those achieving all other responses during initial therapy; since the response rate of indolent b-cell lymphomas to up-front therapy exceeds 90% this distinction is not meaningful there * no more than 2 prior chemotherapy and one prior immunotherapy regimens; if chemoimmunotherapy was used, the limit will be 3 prior regimens * performance status =\< 2 zubrod * staging work-up within 3 weeks and bidimensionally measurable disease * no anti-cancer treatment within the past three weeks * anc \>= 1,000/ul; may be included if in the judgment of the study chairman lower counts are explained by marrow or splenic involvement by lymphoma * platelets \>= 100,000/ul; may be included if in the judgment of the study chairman lower counts are explained by marrow or splenic involvement by lymphoma * bilirubin =\< 1.5 x normal * sgpt =\< 2.5 x normal values * estimated endogenous creatinine clearance \> 50 ml/min * hiv negative; the patients are excluded because the expected opportunistic infections will render study toxicity difficult to interpret; in addition the possible effects of 506u78 on cd4 cells may be dangerous to these patients; furthermore, indolent b-cell lymphomas and aggressive peripheral t-cell lymphomas are extremely rare in the setting of hiv infection * no active cns disease * no other malignancy within the last 5 years, except basal cell carcinoma of the skin or in-situ cervical carcinoma treated with curative intent * females must not be pregnant or breast feeding and must be practicing adequate contraception; this is because 506u78 may be harmful to the developing fetus and nursing newborn or infant * no preexisting sensory or motor neuropathy of grade ≥ 2, no history of seizures * no prior stem cell or bone marrow transplantation; no prior 506u78 * all patients, including women or members of a minority that fulfill criteria for study entry will be eligible for treatment; no one fulfilling all these criteria for entry will be denied treatment solely on the basis of sex or minority status * patients with medical, psychiatric, or social conditions that make compliance with treatment or follow-up unlikely are not eligible * no history of symptomatic cardiac dysfunction or pericardial effusion