OBJECTIVES: I. Determine whether epoetin alfa treatment improves the quality of life in anemic patients who are undergoing chemotherapy for advanced malignancy. II. Determine whether epoetin alfa increases hemoglobin levels and decreases transfusion requirements in these patients. III. Validate or refute the use of an algorithm using pre- and posttreatment epoetin alfa, ferritin, and hemoglobin levels to predict 16 weeks response or no response to therapeutic doses of epoetin alfa as set forth by these patients. IV. Explore whether anemic patients receiving platinum-containing chemotherapy regimens experience less nephrotoxicity if they receive concurrent epoetin alfa compared to those who receive placebo.