This study was performed to determine the clinical activity and safety of weekly low-dose paclitaxel (90 mg/m2) given as a 1-hour infusion in patients with relapsed and refractory non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). Thirty patients were treated on a phase II protocol conducted at the University of Wisconsin Comprehensive Cancer Center and within the Wisconsin Oncology Network (WON). A cycle of therapy was defined as paclitaxel at 90 mg/m2 weekly for 6 consecutive weeks followed by a 2-week rest period. Cycles were repeated as long as there was no disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. In general, the patients were heavily pretreated with a median of 4 prior therapies (range 2-11), and 73% were refractory to the most recent systemic therapy. The median age was 70 (range 44-97). All NHL histological subtypes were eligible. Of the 30 eligible patients enrolled, 26 were evaluable for response and 28 for toxicity. The overall response rate was 23% (95% confidence interval (CI) 9.0-43.7%). One patient had a complete response, and 5 patients had partial responses. The median response duration was 3.2 months (range 1.4-11.8 months). The median event-free survival was 1.9 months. The major toxicity was neuropathy. Despite the limited marrow reserve in this patient population, myelosuppression was minimal. Paclitaxel given in this dose and schedule has modest activity in previously treated non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. The response rate appears similar to other reports using different doses and schedules. Myelosuppression appears less with this schedule than with other schedules.