DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

• Newly diagnosed acute lymphoblastic leukemia or lymphoblastic lymphoma with more than 30% blasts in bone marrow

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

Age:

• 15 to 60

Performance status:

• Not specified

Life expectancy:

• Not specified

Hematopoietic:

• See Disease Characteristics

Hepatic:

• Bilirubin less than 2 mg/dL (unless elevation due to leukemic involvement of liver)

Renal:

• Creatinine less than 2 mg/dL (unless elevation due to leukemic involvement of kidneys)

Cardiovascular:

• No severe cardiac disease

Pulmonary:

• No severe pulmonary disease

Other:

• No severe neurologic or metabolic disease
• HIV negative (if tested)
• No other prior malignancy except nonmelanomatous skin cancer, stage I cervical carcinoma, or other curatively treated malignancy

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

Biologic therapy:

• No prior biologic therapy

Chemotherapy:

• No prior chemotherapy

Endocrine therapy:

• No prior endocrine therapy

Radiotherapy:

• No prior radiotherapy

Surgery:

• No prior surgery