Ganciclovir by Infusion and by Mouth in Treating Patients With Cytomegalovirus After Donor Bone Marrow Transplant

OBJECTIVES:

- To determine the feasibility of using oral ganciclovir (GCV) following induction with
intravenous GCV in the setting of cytomegalovirus (CMV) reactivation after bone marrow
transplantation.

OUTLINE: Blood cultures for cytomegalovirus (CMV) are obtained periodically after the planned
bone marrow transplantation (BMT). Patients showing reactivation of CMV receive induction
ganciclovir (GCV) IV twice a day on days 1-7. Patients then receive maintenance oral GCV
three times a day for 5 weeks in the absence of disease progression or unacceptable toxicity.

Patients undergo blood collection periodically during study for pharmacokinetic studies.

Inclusion Criteria:

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

- Undergoing allogeneic transplantation, including unrelated donor bone marrow
transplantation (BMT) and/or allogeneic donor leukocyte infusion, for any indication

- Patients or their donors must have had a positive pre-BMT cytomegalovirus (CMV)
antibody titer as measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

- Able to comply with study requirements

Exclusion criteria:

- Signs or symptoms of documented CMV infection, including any positive CMV culture from
any site and/or any suspected or documented CMV-associated clinical syndrome, at the
time of study entry

- History of symptomatic CMV-associated clinical syndrome

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

- Receiving concurrent investigational antiviral agents

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

- History of hypersensitivity to ganciclovir or acyclovir