Journalist Novak has brain tumor

WASHINGTON (CNN) - Washington journalist Bob Novak, 77, has a brain tumor, he announced Monday.

"I will be suspending my journalistic work for an indefinite but, God willing, not too lengthy period," Novak, a long-time Washington insider, said in a written statement.

He does not yet know whether the tumor is malignant or benign, and is waiting for a biopsy in the next few days, said his assistant, Kathleen Connolly.

He is alert and talking, and personally wrote the statement, which was posted on the Web site Human Events, she said.