OBJECTIVES: I. Determine safety and toxicity of induction and transplant regimens in patients with chronic myelogenous leukemia or high-risk acute leukemia. II. Determine efficacy of collecting peripheral blood stem cells (PBSC) during early hematopoietic recovery from intensive chemotherapy as a means for in vivo enrichment for cytogenetically normal progenitor cells in this patient population. III. Correlate cytogenetic and molecular responses in the peripheral blood and bone marrow with clinical response, time to progression, and survival in these patients at several timepoints before and after myelosuppressive and myeloablative therapy.