Immunotherapy in Treating Patients Who Are Undergoing Bone Marrow or Peripheral Stem Cell Transplantation

RATIONALE: White blood cells from donors who have been exposed to cytomegalovirus may be able to help prevent this infection from occurring in patients who are undergoing bone marrow or peripheral stem cell transplantation.

PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of donated white blood cells to prevent cytomegalovirus infection in patients who are undergoing bone marrow or peripheral stem cell transplantation.

OBJECTIVES: I. Determine whether adoptive immunotherapy comprising donor-derived CD8+, CMV-specific, major histocompatibility complex class I-restricted cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) clones (CD8+ CMV-specific CTL clones) and CD4+ CMV-specific T-helper (Th)-cell clones is effective in preventing CMV viremia and disease in CMV-positive patients with malignancies requiring allogeneic bone marrow or peripheral blood stem cell transplantation. II. Determine whether the transfer of CD4+ CMV-specific Th-cell clones to patients with deficient responses can reconstitute CD4+ Th-cell activity and augment adoptively transferred CD8+ CMV-specific CTL clones.

OUTLINE: Allogeneic CD8+ CMV-specific, major histocompatibility complex class I-restricted cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) clones (CD8+ CMV-specific CTL clones) and CD4+ CMV-specific T-helper (Th)-cell clones are harvested and cultured in vitro at least 2 weeks before bone marrow or peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) transplantation. Bone marrow or PBSC are infused on day 0. Patients receive the first infusion of CD8+ CMV-specific CTL clones beginning between days 28 and 45 posttransplantation, followed 8 days later by the second infusion, followed 2 days later by the first infusion of CD4+ CMV-specific Th-cell clones. Patients who receive prednisone posttransplantation or have deficient CD8+ CTL responses (i.e., less than 50% of the response measured in the immunocompetent bone marrow donor) after the second infusion of CD8+ CMV-specific CTL clones receive a third infusion of CD8+ CMV-specific CTL clones and a second infusion of CD4+ CMV-specific Th-cell clones before day 67.

PROJECTED ACCRUAL: A total of 30 patients will be accrued for this study within 12-18 months.

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS: See General Eligibility Criteria

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS: See General Eligibility Criteria

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY: See Disease Characteristics --Patients Characteristics-- Age: 12 to 60 Performance status: Not specified Hematopoietic: See Disease Characteristics Hepatic: Not specified Renal: Not specified