Apple CEO Steve Jobs issued an open letter on Monday, reassuring "the Apple Community" that, contrary to speculation, he isn’t dying, and that his noticeable weight loss during 2008 was due to "a hormone imbalance that has been ‘robbing’ me of the proteins my body needs to be healthy." The 53-year-old multimedia titan added that he’s undergoing treatment for the condition and "will continue as Apple’s CEO during my recovery." Jobs’ health has been of widespread concern since he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2004.
The full text of the letter is after the jump and on Apple’s website.
Dear Apple Community,
For the first time in a decade, I’m getting to spend the holiday seasonwith my family, rather than intensely preparing for a Macworld keynote.
Unfortunately, my decision to have Phil deliver the Macworld keynoteset off another flurry of rumors about my health, with some evenpublishing stories of me on my deathbed.
I’ve decided to share something very personal with the Apple community so that we can all relax and enjoy the show tomorrow.
As many of you know, I have been losing weight throughout 2008. Thereason has been a mystery to me and my doctors. A few weeks ago, Idecided that getting to the root cause of this and reversing it neededto become my #1 priority.
Fortunately, after further testing, my doctors think they have foundthe cause—a hormone imbalance that has been “robbing” me of theproteins my body needs to be healthy. Sophisticated blood tests haveconfirmed this diagnosis.
The remedy for this nutritional problem is relatively simple andstraightforward, and I’ve already begun treatment. But, just like Ididn’t lose this much weight and body mass in a week or a month, mydoctors expect it will take me until late this Spring to regain it. Iwill continue as Apple’s CEO during my recovery.
I have given more than my all to Apple for the past 11 years now. Iwill be the first one to step up and tell our Board of Directors if Ican no longer continue to fulfill my duties as Apple’s CEO. I hope theApple community will support me in my recovery and know that I willalways put what is best for Apple first.
So now I’ve said more than I wanted to say, and all that I am going to say, about this.
Steve
Comments (1-3) of 3 Add your comment
Doesn’t the Pancreas produce hormones?
Can this hormone imbalance be bottled as a diet drug? This should be studied. There’s a fortune to be made here if it’s a safe way to lose weight.
Am I the only one who thought of Monty Python while reading the headline? “I’m not dead yet!”