Patients will be eligible for epoetin alfa dose adjustments starting at the Week 5 visit if Hb is > 12 g/dL or Hb increases too rapidly (e.g., >1.0 g/dL in the last one or two consecutive weeks). The last dose of epoetin alfa administered for any treatment group will coincide with the dosing frequency assigned to that group. Epoetin alfa will not be administered later than Week 16 for any treatment group.