苹果CEO乔布斯已接受肝脏移植

苹果CEO乔布斯已接受肝脏移植

果公司(Apple Inc.)首席执行长乔布斯(Steve Jobs)自1月份以来一直在休病假，治疗一种未披露的疾病，大约两个月前他在田纳西州接受了肝脏移植。乔布斯恢复情况良好，预计将于本月晚些时候按计划重返工作岗位，不过开始时他可能不会全时工作。

　　乔布斯没有回复记者请求置评的电子邮件。苹果发言人科顿(Katie Cotton)说，乔布斯继续期待着6月底重返工作岗位，除此之外无可奉告。

　　 一位熟悉苹果公司想法的人士说，乔布斯回来时，他的医生团队可能会鼓励他在最初的一、两个月中不要全时工作。这位人士说，苹果首席营运长库克(Tim Cook)可能会负责更多的工作；库克可能会在不久的将来被任命为苹果的董事。

　　此前，苹果遭到了一些股东的批评，他们称乔布斯健康问题的披露有限。2004年乔布斯的健康开始出现问题。在这件事上，由于乔布斯已经在休病假，他的手术是否是实质性信息尚不得而知。律师事务所Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher驻华盛顿的高级合伙人奥尔森(John Olson)说，只有在你要求股东根据这个信息作出决策的时候，像这样的实质性信息才必须披露。他说，你不能指望公司事无巨细地把乔布斯的健康状况一一道来。

　　奥尔森说，不过一旦乔布斯重新开始工作，苹果在披露乔布斯的健康和恢复情况上必须非常谨慎。奥尔森为公司董事会提供公司治理方面的建议，不过他从来没有为苹果董事会提供过咨询。

　　至少有一些苹果董事知道乔布斯手术的事情。按照乔布斯休病假前所签一份协议的要求，乔布斯的医生每周都向一些董事汇报乔布斯的健康状况。

　　现年54岁的乔布斯于2004年8月1日披露说，他刚刚被诊断患有一种罕见的胰腺癌“胰岛细胞神经内分泌肿瘤”，如果即时通过手术切除的话，该病能够治愈。在发给苹果员工的一份备忘录中，乔布斯说肿瘤得到了及时的诊断，他已经进行了手术，切除了肿瘤，他不需要进行任何化疗或放疗。

Jobs Had Liver Transplant

　　Steve Jobs, who has been on medical leave from Apple Inc. since January to treat an undisclosed medical condition, received a liver transplant in Tennessee about two months ago. The chief executive has been recovering well and is expected to return to work on schedule later this month, though he may work part-time initially.

　　Mr. Jobs didn't respond to an email requesting comment. 'Steve continues to look forward to returning at the end of June, and there's nothing further to say,' said Apple spokeswoman Katie Cotton.

　　When he does return, Mr. Jobs may be encouraged by his physicians to initially 'work part-time for a month or two,' a person familiar with the thinking at Apple said. That may lead Tim Cook, Apple's chief operating officer, to take 'a more encompassing role,' this person said. The person added that Mr. Cook may be appointed to Apple's board in the not-too-distant future.

　　Apple has previously drawn criticism from some shareholders over what they have called limited disclosure of Mr. Jobs's health problems, which began in 2004. In this case, it is unclear whether the surgery is material because Mr. Jobs was already on leave. Material information like that must be disclosed only 'if you are asking shareholders to make a decision based on [that] information,' said John Olson, a senior partner at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher in Washington. 'You can't expect the company to give a blow-by-blow account of Steve Jobs's health.'

　　But once Mr. Jobs resumes work, the company will have to be 'very careful' about what it says 'about his health and his prognosis,' Mr. Olson said. The attorney, who counsels corporate boards on governance issues, has never advised Apple's board.

　　At least some Apple directors were aware of the CEO's surgery. As part of an agreement with Mr. Jobs in place before he went on leave, some board members have been briefed weekly on the CEO's condition by his physician.

　　Mr. Jobs, 54 years old, disclosed on Aug. 1, 2004, that he had just been treated for a rare form of pancreatic cancer, called islet cell neuroendocrine tumor, which can be cured by surgery if removed promptly. In a memo to Apple employees, he said that the tumor was diagnosed in time, that he had undergone surgery to remove it and that he wouldn't require any chemotherapy or radiation.