Combination Chemotherapy in Treating Patients With Relapsed or Refractory Aggressive Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma

You may be eligible if

• DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:
• Histologically confirmed relapsed or refractory aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) including the following:
• * Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma
• * Transformed NHL
• * Follicular large cell lymphoma
• * Peripheral T-cell lymphoma
• * Unclassified aggressive histology (immunoblastic lymphoma)
• Must have received 1 to 3 prior chemotherapy treatment regimens (may include doxorubicin up to a cumulative dose of no greater than 450 mg/m\^2)
• No Burkitt's lymphoma, lymphoblastic lymphoma, or mantle cell lymphoma
• PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:
• Age
• 18 to 64
• Performance status
• WHO 0-1
• Life expectancy
• At least 3 months
• Hematopoietic
• Neutrophil count at least 1,500/mm\^3\*
• Platelet count at least 100,000/mm\^3\* NOTE: \*Lower values may be accepted if evidence of bone marrow involvement
• Hepatic
• Bilirubin no greater than 1.5 times upper limit of normal (ULN)\*\*
• Alkaline phosphatase no greater than 2 times ULN\*\*
• AST or ALT no greater than 2 times ULN\*\*
• No history or clinical symptoms of hepatitis B or C virus NOTE: \*\*Higher values may be accepted if evidence of liver involvement
• Renal
• Creatinine no greater than 1.5 mg/dL
• Cardiovascular
• LVEF at least 50% by MUGA
• No clinically significant cardiovascular abnormalities
• No New York Heart Association class II-IV heart disease
• No myocardial infarction within the past 6 months
• No severe arrhythmia
• No uncontrolled hypertension
• Other
• Not pregnant or nursing
• Negative pregnancy test
• Fertile patients must use effective contraception during and for at least 6 months after study
• No history or clinical symptoms of HIV
• No clinically significant neurological abnormalities
• No serious uncontrolled infection (NCI CTC grade 3-4)
• No condition that would place the patient at undue risk or interfere with the study results
• PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:
• Biologic therapy
• At least 3 months since prior radioimmunotherapy
• Chemotherapy
• See Disease Characteristics
• At least 4 weeks since prior chemotherapy
• At least 1 year since prior platinum or cytarabine (unless complete response to treatment)
• At least 2 years since prior fludarabine or nitrosoureas
• No prior cumulative cisplatin greater than 600 mg/m\^2
• Endocrine therapy
• Not specified
• Radiotherapy
• See Biologic therapy
• At least 4 weeks since prior radiotherapy
• No prior radiotherapy to the whole pelvis
• Surgery
• At least 1 week since prior minor surgery and recovered
• At least 4 weeks since prior major thoracic and/or abdominal surgery and recovered
• Other
• At least 1 month since prior investigational drugs
• Recovered from prior therapy
• No other concurrent investigational drugs