Palifermin in Preventing Chronic Graft-Versus-Host Disease in Patients Who Have Undergone Donor Stem Cell Transplant for Hematologic Cancer

Inclusion Criteria:

* Survival for more than 60 days after an allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) with growth-factor mobilized blood cells
* Current dose of prednisone at =\< 0.5 mg/kg or equivalent or no systemic glucocorticoid treatment
* Ability to remain under care at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (SCCA) for at least 28 days after enrollment in the study
* Able and willing to give informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

* Presence of generalized rash involving more than 50% of the body surface
* Prior diagnosis of chronic GVHD requiring systemic immunosuppressive treatment
* Any prior local irradiation to a field that included the thymus (total body irradiation is allowed)
* History of thymectomy
* Use of rabbit antithymocyte globulin in the pretransplant conditioning regimen
* Use of a graft depleted of T cells
* Any evidence of recurrent or persistent malignancy after HCT
* Participation in another study with chronic GVHD as the primary endpoint
* Any prior history of carcinoma
* Any infection that is not improving during appropriate treatment
* History of palifermin intolerance
* A positive pregnancy test (women of child-bearing potential)
* Breast feeding