Apple chief executive officer Steve Jobs is being treated for a
"hormone imbalance" but is staying on as the firm's CEO.
Apple now admits that Jobs will not be addressing tomorrow's
Macworld show in San Francisco because of the illness.
Last December,
when the company revealed he would not be at the show to
deliver his traditional keynote, it said the decision had nothing
to do with health concerns.
The firm said Jobs' absence was because the company would no
longer be taking part in the long-running conference run by IDG
after this year.
But
in
a statement, Jobs said he had been suffering from ill-health
for a number of months.
"I have been losing weight throughout 2008. Doctors think they
have found the cause - a hormone imbalance that has been robbing me
of the proteins my body needs to be healthy," he said.
Job said he would carry on as CEO, but added that his treatment
for his hormone imbalance would not be completed until April, when
he hopes to have gained weight. His increasingly gaunt appearance
was a cause of concern throughout last year.