Inclusion Criteria:

- Histologically confirmed aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of 1 of the following
cellular types:

- Grade III follicular center

- Diffuse large B-cell

- Mantle cell

- Primary mediastinal B-cell

- Burkitt's

- High-grade B-cell (Burkitt-like)

- Anaplastic large cell of 1 of the following subtypes:

- CD30-positive

- T-cell

- Null cell

- Hodgkin's-like

- Relapsed or refractory disease after prior standard chemotherapy, meeting criteria
for 1of the following cohorts:

- Cohort 1 (relapsed but chemosensitive): Prior complete response (CR) or partial
response (PR) lasting at least 4 weeks after the most recent prior therapy

- Cohort 2 (refractory): Stable disease or less than a PR after the most recent
prior therapy

- No progressive disease after the most recent prior therapy

- Measurable disease

- At least 1 bidimensionally measurable lesion at least 10 mm by conventional
techniques or clinical exam

- Ineligible for or unwilling to undergo hematopoietic stem cell transplantation

- Patients requiring debulking prior to transplant allowed

- No known CNS involvement by lymphoma

- Prior CNS disease that has been successfully treated in patients with relapsed
disease exclusively outside of the CNS may be allowed by the principal
investigator

- Performance status - ECOG 0-2

- More than 3 months

- WBC at least 3,000/mm^3

- Absolute neutrophil count at least 1,200/mm^3

- Platelet count at least 100,000/mm^3

- Bilirubin no greater than 1.5 mg/dL

- AST/ALT no greater than 2.5 times upper limit of normal

- Creatinine no greater than 1.5 mg/dL

- Creatinine clearance at least 60 mL/min

- No symptomatic congestive heart failure

- No unstable angina pectoris

- No cardiac arrhythmia

- Not pregnant or nursing

- Negative pregnancy test

- Fertile patients must use effective contraception

- No prior allergic reaction or hypersensitivity to compounds containing Cremophor EL
or agents of similar chemical or biological composition to BMS-247550

- No peripheral neuropathy grade 2 or greater

- No other currently active malignancy except nonmelanoma skin cancer or carcinoma in
situ of the cervix (previously treated malignancy allowed if considered to be at less
than 30% risk of relapse)

- No ongoing or active infection

- No psychiatric illness or social situation that would preclude study compliance

- No other concurrent uncontrolled illness

- No colony-stimulating factors (CSFs) within 24 hours of study chemotherapy

- No CSFs during first course of study therapy

- No concurrent filgrastim-SD/01

- No concurrent immunotherapy

- See Disease Characteristics

- At least 4 weeks since prior cytotoxic chemotherapy (6 weeks for nitrosoureas or
mitomycin)

- No other concurrent chemotherapy

- No concurrent hormonal therapy

- At least 4 weeks since prior radiotherapy

- No concurrent therapeutic radiotherapy

- At least 4 weeks since prior surgery

- Recovered from prior therapy

- At least 7 days since prior cimetidine

- No concurrent cimetidine

- No concurrent combination antiretroviral therapy for HIV-positive patients

- No other concurrent investigational agents

- No other concurrent anticancer medications

- No concurrent unconventional therapies, food, or vitamin supplements containing
Hypericum perforatum