APPLE boss Steve Jobs is to take medical leave until the end of June as it emerged his health problems were more complex than first thought.

He revealed last week he was being treated for a "hormone imbalance robbing me of the proteins my body needs to be healthy" but had said he was staying on as the firm's head.

Today's announcement sent the company's shares down as much as 10 per cent.

The Apple co-founder and CEO was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2004, and has appeared increasingly gaunt at recent public appearances.

Last month Apple said Mr Jobs, 53, would not be making his annual keynote address at the Macworld conference in San Francisco. In an email to staff yesterday, he said: "I have decided to take a medical leave of absence until the end of June. I have learned my health-related issues are more complex than originally thought. As CEO, I plan to remain involved in major strategic decisions."

Apple's board said it was giving Mr Jobs "unwavering support" and chief operating officer Tim Cook will stand in.

Mr Jobs co-founded Apple in 1976, left in 1985, and returned in 1997 to become CEO in 2000. Some analysts fear that without a major product launch, such as last year's iPhone 3G, Apple will lack a motivating force for its shares this year.

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