Green Tea or Polyphenon E in Preventing Lung Cancer in Former Smokers With Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS: * Diagnosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease * FEV\_1/FVC ≤ 78 * History of smoking ≥ 1 pack daily for 30 years OR 2 packs daily for 15 years * Stopped smoking for ≥ 1 year * No previously diagnosed bronchiectasis * No history of \> 1 acute emphysema exacerbation within the past 3 months PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS: * ECOG performance status 0-1 * WBC ≥ 3,500/mm³ * Platelet count \> 130,000/mm³ * Hemoglobin ≥ 11 g/dL (female) or 12 g/dL (male) * AST and ALT normal * Bilirubin ≤ 1.5 mg/dL (unless Gilbert's disease present) * Creatinine ≤ 1.5 mg/dL * Alkaline phosphatase ≤ 2 times upper limit of normal * Not pregnant or nursing * Negative pregnancy test * Fertile patients must use effective contraception * No invasive cancer within the past 5 years * Able and willing to consume caffeinated beverages * Able to produce induced sputum * Able to perform forced expiratory maneuver during spirometry testing * No immunosuppression by virtue of medication or disease including, but no limited to, any of the following: * Organ transplantation * Liver or kidney failure * Autoimmune diseases * Oral steroids * Chemotherapy * No serious concurrent illness that could preclude study compliance, such as uncontrolled high blood pressure, heart disease, or poorly controlled diabetes * No myocardial infarction within the past 6 weeks PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY: * At least 2 weeks since prior and no concurrent dietary supplements or herbal products, …