Steve Jobs: I'm Not Dying, or Leaving Apple

Updated from 9:24 a.m. EST

Apple (AAPL) CEO Steve Jobs says his thinness mystery has been solved, and he's now getting treatment.

After months of silence in the face of mounting concerns about Jobs' health, the Apple co-founder and chief executive issued a statement Monday outlining the probable reason for his weight loss, and along with it, a pledge to continue leading the company.

A "hormone imbalance has been robbing me of the proteins my body needs to be healthy," Jobs wrote in a prepared statement. He went on to say that "the remedy for this nutritional problem is relatively simple and straightforward, and I've already begun treatment."

Click here for the full text of the letter.

The announcement comes just ahead of Apple's Macworld show, where marketing chief Phil Schiller, not Jobs, will deliver the keynote address. The announcement of Jobs' absence and the cancellation of future Macworld shows reignited rumors that Jobs' health was in decline.

Jobs was treated for pancreatic cancer in 2004. Among the more common and challenging after-effects of the cancer surgery is that it leaves a person with a somewhat compromised digestive system. In June, when Jobs took the stage to introduce the cheaper, faster iPhone, his dramatically thinner appearance led to considerable speculation about his well-being. Until now, both Jobs and Apple regarded the issue as a private matter.

"I have given more than my all to Apple for the past 11 years now," Jobs' statement continued. "I will be the first one to step up and tell our Board of Directors if I can no longer continue to fulfill my duties as Apple's CEO. I hope the Apple community will support me in my recovery and know that I will always put what is best for Apple first."