Collecting Tissue Samples From Patients With Leukemia or Other Blood Disorders Planning to Enroll in an ECOG Leukemia Treatment Clinical Trial

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

Candidate for enrollment on an ECOG treatment clinical trial for acute or chronic leukemia

Suspected clinical diagnosis and protocol ID number of the treatment clinical trial under consideration must be submitted to ECOG's Leukemia Translational Studies Laboratory to ensure that the required antibody panels are used and functional assays are performed

Chosen ECOG treatment clinical trial must be active and accruing

Patient must not have begun treatment on the ECOG treatment clinical trial

Patient may be concurrently enrolled on this laboratory study and a treatment clinical trial if immediate treatment is medically necessary

If subsequent diagnostic review alters the original diagnosis, the patient will be removed from the treatment clinical trial

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

Not specified

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

See Disease Characteristics