Barbara Walters To Get Heart Surgery

On today's episode of The View, host Barbara Walters announced that she will be taking a hiatus from the show to undergo heart valve replacement surgery.

"Later this week, I'm going to have surgery to replace one faulty heart valve," Walters said, opening the show with news, which she had only revealed to her cohosts that morning. "You kept it secret very well, Barbara," Joy Behar said, and Walters explained, "I thought it best not to talk about it too far in advance." Walters, who said that she has known about her faulty valve for awhile, discovered it during an echocardiogram, and explained she and her doctors agreed, "Since the summer is coming up, I can take a nice vacation." Recovery can be anywhere from a month to three months, she said.

Walters is 80 years old.