Denileukin Diftitox in Treating Patients With Relapsed or Refractory Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma

You may be eligible if

• DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:
• Histologically confirmed B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) of 1 of the following subtypes:
• * Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma
• * Follicular lymphoma (grades 1-3)
• * Small lymphocytic lymphoma
• * Transformed B-cell lymphoma
• Relapsed or refractory disease
• * Disease failed to respond to or progressed after ≥ 2 prior treatment regimens (e.g., high-dose therapy \[HDT\] with stem cell transplantation \[SCT\]\*) NOTE: \*Patients who have received HDT with SCT are considered to have diminished bone marrow reserve
• Diminished bone marrow reserve AND/OR mild to moderate cytopenia, meeting 1 of the following criteria:
• * Absolute neutrophil count ≥ 1,000/mm\^3 but \< 1,500/mm\^3 (growth factor independent)
• * WBC ≥ 2,000/mm\^3 but \< 4,000/mm\^3 (growth factor independent)
• * Platelet count ≥ 40,000/mm\^3 (25,000/mm\^3 if thrombocytopenia is secondary to marrow involvement by lymphoma) but \< 150,000/mm\^3 (platelet transfusion independent)
• At least 1 bidimensionally measurable lymph node or tumor mass ≥ 4 cm
• PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:
• Age
• 18 and over
• Performance status
• ECOG 0-2
• Life expectancy
• At least 16 weeks
• Hematopoietic
• See Disease Characteristics
• Hepatic
• Bilirubin ≤ 1.5 times upper limit of normal (ULN)
• AST and ALT ≤ 2 times ULN
• Albumin ≥ 3.0 g/dL
• No history of veno-occlusive disease of the liver
• No chronic hepatitis
• Renal
• Creatinine \< 2 times ULN
• Cardiovascular
• No congestive heart failure
• No New York Heart Association class III-IV cardiac disease
• No ventricular tachycardia
• No fibrillation
• No myocardial infarction within the past 12 months
• Other
• Not pregnant or nursing
• Negative pregnancy test
• Fertile patients must use effective contraception
• No known HIV positivity
• No active GVHD ≥ grade 2 within the past 6 months
• No other serious medical illness or active infection that would preclude study participation
• No known hypersensitivity to denileukin diftitox or any of its components (e.g., diphtheria toxin, interleukin-2, or their excipients)
• No other malignancy within the past 5 years except successfully treated carcinoma in situ of the cervix or basal cell carcinoma
• PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:
• Biologic therapy
• See Disease Characteristics
• At least 6 months since prior allogeneic SCT
• No concurrent immunotherapy
• Chemotherapy
• No concurrent chemotherapy
• Endocrine therapy
• No concurrent anticancer hormonal therapy
• No concurrent corticosteroids for the treatment of NHL
• Concurrent corticosteroids allowed for the following conditions:
• * Tapering doses of corticosteroids for resolving graft-versus-host disease (GVHD)
• * Low-dose maintenance corticosteroids for the treatment of an autoimmune disorder
• * Corticosteroids as premedication prior to denileukin diftitox administration or as transient treatment for hypersensitivity reactions
• Radiotherapy
• More than 4 weeks since prior and no concurrent radiotherapy
• No prior radiotherapy to the only site of evaluable disease unless disease progression has occurred at that site
• Surgery
• Not specified
• Other
• At least 3 weeks since prior antilymphoma therapy
• More than 4 weeks since prior and no other concurrent experimental therapy, including approved drugs tested in an investigational setting