Apple CEO Steve Jobs has taken medical leave once again. The 55-year-old cancer survivor sent an e-mail to all Apple employees to announce the unwelcome news, but he offered no specific details about his health.
“At my request, the board of directors has granted me a medical leave of absence so I can focus on my health. I will continue as CEO and be involved in major strategic decisions for the company,” Jobs wrote in the e-mail.
“I have asked [Apple COO] Tim Cook to be responsible for all of Apple’s day-to-day operations. I have great confidence that Tim and the rest of the executive management team will do a terrific job executing the exciting plans we have in place for 2011. I love Apple so much and hope to be back as soon as I can. In the meantime, my family and I would deeply appreciate respect for our privacy.”
Liver Transplant Recovery
Jobs’ latest medical leave comes after a liver transplant nearly a year ago. After the transplant, Dr. James Easton, program director at Methodist University Hospital Transplant Institute in Memphis, Tenn., said Jobs was recovering well and had an “excellent prognosis.”
The hospital’s one-year patient and graft survival rates are among the best in the nation and were a dominant reason in Jobs’ choice of transplant centers, Easton said. However, many patients die within a year of a transplant.
Jobs took a six-month medical leave in January 2010. He previously survived pancreatic cancer. There was speculation that when Jobs did return, he would not return full-time. Cook also took the helm in the year-ago leave.
The news comes after Jobs found recognition for his battle against poor health. The Financial Times named Jobs Person of the Year for 2011. The paper called his recovery from a liver transplant “the most remarkable…