Paul Sakuma / AP
Having survived pancreatic cancer, Apple's CEO now says he has a “hormone imbalance.” The Daily Beast got a second opinion.
No company relies more on its CEO than Apple does on Steve Jobs, so when word got out that the man behind the iPhone, already dogged by speculation regarding his visibly poor health, was skipping out on his annual appearance at the Macworld Expo, investors were understandably jittery—maybe even panicked.
Observers had long suggested that Jobs, a survivor of pancreatic cancer, come clean with whatever was ailing him in order to reassure his shareholders that their money was in stable hands. The vacuum of information had led to mass sell offs of Apple stock over unsubstantiated rumors several times, including a 2 percent drop just last week. The notoriously secretive Jobs finally tossed his shareholders a bone yesterday when he released a letter confessing to a “hormone imbalance” for which he was receiving treatment.
Of course, it could just be that the years are catching up on the overworked Jobs, who turns 54 in February.
“I've decided to share something very personal with the Apple community so that we can all relax and enjoy the show tomorrow,” Jobs wrote. “As many of you know, I have been losing weight throughout 2008. The reason has been a mystery to me and my doctors. A few weeks ago, I decided that getting to the root cause of this and reversing it needed to become my #1 priority. Fortunately, after further testing, my doctors think they have found the cause—a hormone imbalance that has been 'robbing' me of the proteins my body needs to be healthy.”
With virtually no additional details regarding this newly disclosed illness, some critics were skeptical that Jobs's condition was as simple as he made out. To understand more about Jobs's purported condition, I talked to an expert in male hormone imbalances—Dr. John Morley, geriatrician and endocrinologist at St. Louis University Medical School.
According to Morley, Jobs' visible symptoms of weight loss and anemia are consistent with a variety of hormone disorders known as “polyglandular failure syndromes” that can cause a range of nutritional problems for patients. “I would think he fits into that spectrum,” Morley said. “He most probably has B12 deficiency.”
B12 deficiency is associated with nausea, diarrhea, and paleness, all of which could apply to the gaunt Jobs. Other disorders that might be behind Jobs's illness include adrenal disease, which afflicted John F. Kennedy and can cause weight loss and diarrhea; and celiac disease, which renders people unable to digest wheat and causes malnutrition.
Despite speculation that surgery on Jobs's pancreas in 2004 to remove a tumor could be behind his current condition, Morley said that a damaged pancreas might lead to diabetes and enzyme deficiencies consistent with Jobs' condition, but would likely not affect hormones. So—if Jobs's story is to be believed—his hormone imbalance is probably unrelated.
Tracy Quan's latest novel is Diary of a Jetsetting Call Girl, set in Provence and praised in The Nation as a "deft account of occupational rigors and anxieties before the crash." Tracy's debut, Diary of a Manhattan Call Girl, and the sequel, Diary of a Married Call Girl, are international bestsellers. A regular columnist for The Guardian, she has written for many publications including Cosmopolitan, The Financial Times, and The New York Times.
Joe Mathews is a journalist, an Irvine senior fellow at the New America Foundation, and a contributing writer at the Los Angeles Times. He previously served as Justice Department reporter for the Wall Street Journal and as a city desk reporter at the Baltimore Sun. He is the author of The People’s Machine: Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Rise of Blockbuster Democracy.
Gerald Posner is the award-winning author of 10 investigative nonfiction bestsellers, ranging from political assassinations, to Nazi war criminals, to 9/11, to terrorism (www.posner.com). Posner lives in Miami Beach with his wife, the author Trisha Posner.
The Daily Beast is dedicated to news and commentary, culture, and entertainment. We carefully curate the web’s most essential stories and bring you original must-reads from our talented contributors.
Renata Espinosa is the New York editor of Fashion Wire Daily. She is also the co-founder of impressionistic fashion and art blog TheNuNu and a sometimes backup dancer for "The Anna Copa Cabanna Show."
Amanda Fortini has written for The New Yorker, Slate, Elle, and New York, among other publications. She lives in Los Angeles.
Benjamin Sarlin is a reporter for The Daily Beast. He previously covered New York City politics for The New York Sun and has worked for talkingpointsmemo.com.
Benjamin Sarlin is a reporter for The Daily Beast. He previously covered New York City politics for The New York Sun and has worked for talkingpointsmemo.com.
Benjamin Sarlin is a reporter for The Daily Beast. He previously covered New York City politics for The New York Sun and has worked for talkingpointsmemo.com.
Benjamin Sarlin is a reporter for The Daily Beast. He previously covered New York City politics for The New York Sun and has worked for talkingpointsmemo.com.
He may just to have to give up being a vegan.
Thank you.
As a first time user, your comment has been submitted for review. It can take anywhere from a few hours to a day or two for your comment to be reviewed, depending on the time of week and the volume of comments we receive.
Please log in to leave comments.