Primed peripheral blood progenitor cells (PBPC) with hematopoietic growth factors enhance marrow engraftment after autologous bone marrow transplantation (BMT). G-CSF and GM-CSF stimulate the production of PBPC; both cytokines alone also stimulate neutrophil recovery after autologous BMT. Little data exist comparing these two cytokines. We prospectively studied G-CSF and GM-CSF in autologous BMT. Forty-four consecutive patients with either Hodgkin's disease or non-Hodgkin's lymphoma underwent autologous BMT using both PBPC and autologous marrow. The autologous BMT preparative regimen was CBV (VP-16 2400 mg/m2, CY 1800 mg/m2 i.v. four times daily for 4 days, BCNU 600 mg/m2). Sixteen patients received G-CSF 5 micrograms/kg sc daily for 8 days for mobilization of PBPC and received G-CSF 16 micrograms/kg i.v. four times daily after autologous BMT. Twenty-eight patients received GM-CSF to mobilize PBPC (14 patients received 250 micrograms/m2 sc daily for 8 days; 14 patients received 125 micrograms/m2 sc twice daily for 8 days) and GM-CSF (250 micrograms/m2 i.v. four times daily) after autologous BMT. Patients underwent three to five pheresis procedures to harvest at least 3 x 10(8) nucleated cells/kg. Patients receiving G-CSF had higher peripheral WBC counts than did those receiving GM-CSF. Total numbers of mononuclear cells, total CD34+ cells and total CD34+/33-negative cells were similar in the two treatment groups. The patients receiving G-CSF after autologous BMT experienced a more rapid engraftment of both neutrophils (9 days vs 13 days, p = 0.0001) and platelets (14 days vs 18 days, p = 0.027) than did patients receiving GM-CSF after transplant.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)