RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. Combining radiation therapy with chemotherapy may kill more tumor cells.

PURPOSE: Randomized phase III trial to compare the effectiveness of radiation therapy with or without doxorubicin and vinblastine in treating patients with stage I or stage II Hodgkin's disease.

OBJECTIVES: I. Compare progression-free and overall survival of patients with clinical Stage IA/IIA Hodgkin's disease who have not undergone laparotomy and who are randomized to treatment with subtotal nodal irradiation with vs. without 3 courses of doxorubicin/vinblastine. II. Compare the long-term toxicities associated with these treatments, including cardiopulmonary toxicity, secondary malignancies, and infertility. III. Identify subgroups of patients (based on age, gender, tumor histology, number of disease sites, and presence of high neck presentation) that are particularly responsive to these treatments.

OUTLINE: Randomized study. Arm I: Radiotherapy. Subtotal nodal irradiation using megavoltage equipment (4-10 MeV). Arm II: 2-Drug Combination Chemotherapy followed by Radiotherapy. Doxorubicin, DOX, NSC-123127; Vinblastine, VBL, NSC-49842; followed by subtotal nodal irradiation as in Arm I.

PROJECTED ACCRUAL: 210 patients/arm will be enrolled over about 7 years.

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS: Biopsy-proven Hodgkin's disease, subclassified according to the Rye system Clinical Stages IA, IEA, IIA, and IIEA according to modified Ann Arbor system Staging laparotomy not allowed Completely resected disease allowed Residual disease, if present, must be bidimensionally measurable No mediastinal mass greater than 1/3 the maximum chest diameter No infradiaphragmatic presentation No pericardial E lesions (small pericardial effusions in the absence of nodular pericardial disease allowed) Concurrent registration on protocol SWOG-9208 (quality-of-life study) required unless patient does not understand or read English

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS: Age: 16 and over Performance status: SWOG 0-2 Hematopoietic: AGC at least 2,000 Platelets within normal limits Hepatic: Bilirubin within normal limits Renal: Creatinine within normal limits Cardiovascular: LVEF normal No serious EKG abnormality Pulmonary: No serious pulmonary condition Other: No serious medical condition other than Hodgkin's disease No known AIDS or HIV-associated complex No second malignancy within 5 years except: Adequately treated nonmelanomatous skin cancer Adequately treated in situ carcinoma of the cervix No pregnant or lactating women Adequate contraception required of fertile patients Blood/body fluid analyses to determine eligibility completed within 14 days prior to registration; imaging studies for tumor measurement completed within 28 days prior to registration; screening exams other than blood/body fluid analyses, and imaging studies of nonmeasurable disease or uninvolved organs completed within 42 days prior to registration

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY: Biologic therapy: No prior biologic therapy Chemotherapy: No prior chemotherapy for any reason Endocrine therapy: Not specified Radiotherapy: No prior radiotherapy for any reason Surgery: No staging laparotomy