By Jennifer Glickel
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MANHATTAN — Veteran broadcast journalist Barbara Walters announced on her show "The View" this morning that she will undergo heart surgery later this week to replace a faulty valve.
Walters will take the summer off from the show to recover, which she said could take between one and three months.
The 80-year-old creator of "The View" told the audience that she has been aware of her condition for "many months," but thought that with the show's upcoming summer break in July and hiatus in August, Monday would be a good time to announce the procedure.
When asked by co-host Whoopi Goldberg if she was scared about the surgery, Walters replied by saying, "I don't think I'm really scared; I'm glad it's going to be over with. It's going to be taken care of."
Walters plans to come "roaring back" in September, she said Monday morning.
