Combination Chemotherapy Followed by Donor Stem Cell Transplant in Treating Patients With Relapsed or High-Risk Primary Refractory Hodgkin Lymphoma

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

* Histologically confirmed classical Hodgkin lymphoma, including CD20+ disease

  * No lymphocyte predominant histology
* Primary refractory or relapsed disease with all 3 risk factors, failed platinum-based chemotherapy, or disease relapsed more than 100 days after autologous stem cell transplantation, proven by biopsy or fine-needle aspiration (cytology) of an involved site

  * Risk factors are defined as B-symptoms, extranodal sites of disease, and disease remission lasting \< 1 year after first-line therapy
* Failed doxorubicin hydrochloride or mechlorethamine hydrochloride-containing front-line therapy
* Fludeoxyglucose F 18-PET scan demonstrating PET-avid disease
* No more than 2 prior salvage chemotherapy regimens (for patients proceed to allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation \[AHSCT\])
* Donor available meeting 1 of the following criteria (for patients proceed to AHSCT):

  * HLA-matched or one allele mismatched related donor

    * Genotypically or phenotypically matched at ≥ 9/10 of the A, B, C, DRB1, and DQB1 loci, as tested by high resolution
    * Peripheral blood stem cells (PBSC) collected
  * HLA-matched unrelated donor

    * Matched at ≥ 9/10 (allele mismatch only) of the A, B, C, DRB1, and DQB1 loci, as tested by high resolution
    * PBSC or bone marrow collected
  * Umbilical cord blood (2 units)

    * must be ≥ 4/6 HLA-A, B antigen, and DRB1 allele matched with recipient

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

* Platelet count \> 50,000/mm\^3
* ANC \> 1,000/mm\^3
* Cardiac ejection fraction \> 50% (for patients ≥ 18 years of age)
* Fractional shortening \> 50% by echocardiogram\* (for patients \< 18 years of age)
* Adjusted diffusing capacity \> 50% on pulmonary function testing\*
* Serum creatinine \< 1.5 mg/dL
* Creatinine clearance ≥ 50 mL/min
* Total bilirubin \< 2.0 mg/dL in the absence of a history of Gilbert disease
* HIV I and II negative
* Not pregnant or nursing
* Negative pregnancy test
* Fertile patients must use effective contraception
* Karnofsky performance status (PS) ≥ 70% or Lansky PS ≥ 70% (for patients proceed to AHSCT)
* No active and uncontrolled infection at time of transplantation including active infection with Aspergillus or other mold (for patients proceed to AHSCT) NOTE: \*measured since last chemotherapy

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

* See Disease Characteristics
* No prior allogeneic transplantation
* No more than 1 prior autologous transplantation
* No inability to complete planned cytoreduction due to therapy complications