Inclusion Criteria

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

- Histopathologically confirmed CD25+ Hodgkin's lymphoma

- At least 20% of the malignant cells positive by immunohistochemistry

- Stage II-IV disease

- Meets the following criteria:

- Failed standard chemotherapy

- Not eligible for curative salvage radiotherapy or chemotherapy

- Not eligible for or refused bone marrow transplantation

- Measurable disease

- No patient whose serum neutralizes LMB-2 immunotoxin in tissue culture, due either to
antitoxin or antimouse-IgG antibodies

- No patient whose serum neutralizes > 75% of the activity of 1 µg/mL of LMB-2
immunotoxin

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

- ECOG performance status 0-2

- Absolute neutrophil count ≥ 1,000/mm³

- Platelet count ≥ 50,000/mm³

- Not pregnant or nursing

- Negative pregnancy test

- Fertile patients must use effective contraception

- ALT and AST ≤ 2.5 times upper limit of normal

- Albumin ≥ 3.0 g/dL

- Bilirubin ≤ 2.2 mg/dL (< 5 mg/dL if Gilbert's syndrome is present)

- Creatinine ≤ 1.4 mg/dL OR creatinine clearance ≥ 50 mL/min

- No uncontrolled intercurrent illness including, but not limited to, any of the
following:

- Ongoing or active infection

- Symptomatic congestive heart failure

- Unstable angina pectoris

- Cardiac arrhythmia

- Psychiatric illness or social situations that would limit study compliance

- No HIV or hepatitis C positivity

- Hepatitis B surface antigen positivity allowed provided patient is receiving
lamivudine

- LVEF ≥ 45%

- DLCO ≥ 50% of normal OR FEV_1 ≥ 60% of normal

- No active second malignancy requiring treatment

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

- See Disease Characteristics

- No systemic cytotoxic chemotherapy within the past 4 weeks

- No systemic steroids (except stable doses of prednisone ≤ 20 mg/day) within the past
4 weeks

- No monoclonal antibody therapy within the past 12 weeks

- No prior LMB-2 immunotoxin

- No concurrent warfarin