Chlorambucil Compared With Radiation Therapy in Treating Patients With Previously Untreated Stage III or Stage IV Follicular Lymphoma

Inclusion Criteria

• •DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:
• •Diagnosis of follicular lymphoma
• •* Stage III or IV disease
• •* Grades I, II, or III
• •* Previously untreated disease
• •Nodal and extranodal sites
• •Bidimensionally measurable disease by physical examination or diagnostic imaging
• •No CNS or orbital non-Hodgkin's lymphoma localization
• •PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:
• •Age:
• •18 and over (for patients at EORTC centers)
• •65 and over (for patients at HOVON centers)
• •Performance status:
• •WHO 0-2
• •Life expectancy:
• •Not specified
• •Hematopoietic:
• •WBC at least 4,000/mm\^3
• •Platelet count at least 100,000/mm\^3
• •Hemoglobin at least 6.0 g/dL
• •Hepatic:
• •Not specified
• •Renal:
• •Not specified
• •Cardiovascular:
• •No severe cardiac disease that would preclude study treatment
• •Pulmonary:
• •No severe pulmonary disease that would preclude study treatment
• •Other:
• •HIV negative
• •No severe neurologic, psychiatric, or metabolic disease that would preclude study treatment
• •No other prior malignancy except basal cell skin cancer or carcinoma in situ of the cervix
• •PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:
• •Biologic therapy:
• •Not specified
• •Chemotherapy:
• •Not specified
• •Endocrine therapy:
• •No concurrent systemic corticosteroids, including dexamethasone for nausea and vomiting palliation (inhalation and topical corticosteroids allowed)
• •Radiotherapy:
• •No concurrent elective radiotherapy to an adjacent negative lymph node
• •Surgery:
• •Not specified