Bryostatin 1 and Cytarabine in Treating Patients With Relapsed Acute Myelogenous Leukemia

RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop cancer cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining more than one drug may kill more cancer cells. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of combining bryostatin 1 with cytarabine in treating patients who have relapsed primary acute myelogenous leukemia.

OBJECTIVES: * Determine the response rate in patients with primary acute myelogenous leukemia in first relapse treated with bryostatin 1 and high-dose cytarabine. * Determine the toxic effects of this regimen in these patients. * Determine the relapse-free survival and overall survival of patients treated with this regimen. OUTLINE: This is a multicenter study. * Induction: Patients receive bryostatin 1 IV over 24 hours on days 1 and 11. Patients also receive high-dose cytarabine IV over 3 hours every 12 hours for 4 infusions on days 2-3 and days 9-10. Patients who achieve a major response receive a second course of induction therapy. * Consolidation: Patients who achieve complete remission receive bryostatin 1 IV over 24 hours on days 1 and 10 and high-dose cytarabine IV over 3 hours every 12 hours for 2 infusions on days 2 and 9. Treatment continues for up to 6 courses in the absence of disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. Patients who achieve a response and subsequently relapse may receive additional induction and consolidation therapy at the discretion of the investigator. Patients are followed every 6 months. PROJECTED ACCRUAL: A total of 15-46 patients will be accrued for this study.