S0816 Fludeoxyglucose F 18-PET/CT Imaging and Combination Chemotherapy With or Without Additional Chemotherapy and G-CSF in Treating Patients With Stage III or Stage IV Hodgkin Lymphoma

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

   - Histologically confirmed classical Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) (i.e., nodular sclerosis,
   mixed cellularity, lymphocyte-rich, or lymphocyte-depleted)

      - Previously untreated stage III or IV disease

      - No nodular lymphocyte predominant disease

   - Bidimensionally measurable disease

   - Adequate biopsy samples from original diagnostic specimen must be available for
   pathologic review

      - Tissue obtained from core biopsies allowed

      - No tissue obtained from needle aspirations or cytologies

   - Must have known HIV status

      - No multi-drug resistant HIV infection, CD4 counts < 150/μL, or other concurrent
      AIDS-defining conditions in HIV-positive patients

      - HIV-positive patients with CD4 counts ≥ 150/μL at the time of enrollment OR
      documented CD4 count > 250/μL at any time within 8 months prior to HL diagnosis
      allowed

   - Must have undergone unilateral or bilateral bone marrow biopsy within the past 42 days

   - Must have a diagnostic quality CT scan of the chest/abdomen and pelvis AND baseline
   FDG-PET scan within the past 28 days

      - Combined PET/CT scans required

      - No older "stand-alone" FDG-PET scans

      - No low-resolution "localization" CT scans as part of a combined PET/CT scans

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

   - Zubrod performance status 0-2

   - Serum erythrocyte sedimentation rate, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), hemoglobin,
   albumin, white blood cell count (WBC), and lymphocytes measured within the past 28
   days

   - Serum estradiol (women only), testosterone (men only), follicle stimulating hormone
   (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH) (both men and women) levels must be drawn within 60
   days prior to registration

   - Not pregnant or nursing

   - Fertile patients must use effective contraception during and for ≥ 6 months after
   completion of study therapy

   - No significant cardiac abnormalities as assessed by multiple gated acquisition scan
   (MUGA) or ECHO AND cardiac ejection fraction ≥ 45% in patients with a history of
   hypertension or cardiac symptoms

   - Hepatitis B-negative (i.e., hepatitis B surface antigen-negative or anti-hepatitis B
   core antigen-negative)

      - Patients immune to or immunized against hepatitis B (i.e., anti-hepatitis B
      surface antibody-positive) are eligible

   - Hepatitis C-negative (i.e., anti-hepatitis C antibody-negative)

   - No significant lung disease with abnormal lung function tests (i.e., diffusing
   capacity of lung for carbon monoxide (DLCO) > 25% below predicted after correction for
   hemoglobin) unless attributable to lymphoma

   - No requirement for continuous supplemental oxygen therapy

   - No other prior malignancy except adequately treated basal cell or squamous cell skin
   cancer, in situ cervical cancer, adequately treated stage I or II cancer from which
   the patient is currently in complete remission, or any other cancer from which the
   patient has been disease-free for 5 years

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

   - See Disease Characteristics

   - No prior chemotherapy, radiotherapy, or antibody therapy for lymphoma

   - No prior solid organ transplantation