Patients receive induction chemotherapy with daunorubicin IV over 10-15 minutes on days 1-3, cytarabine IV continuously on days 1-5, topotecan IV continuously on days 6-8, and etoposide IV over 60 minutes on days 9 and 10. Within 4 weeks of hematologic recovery, patients achieving remission after induction receive consolidation chemotherapy with cytarabine IV over 1 hour every 12 hours on days 1, 3, and 5. Subsequent courses of consolidation chemotherapy begin within 2 weeks of documentation of hematologic recovery from the prior consolidation course. Consolidation chemotherapy continues for 4 courses in the absence of unacceptable toxicity or disease progression.