Eric Massa suddenly dropped his reelection bid Wednesday

Eric Massa suddenly dropped his reelection bid Wednesday, citing health concerns, as allegations surfaced that he sexually harassed a male staffer.

Massa, a 20-year veteran of the Navy, vehemently denied charges reported by Politico and leaked to the Daily News by sources on both sides of the political aisle.

Massa, a Democrat, said he's retiring because of a recurrence of cancer, which he had beaten before. He implied if there was harassment, it was verbal, not physical.

"Do I or have I ever used salty language when I'm angry?" he said. "Yes, I have, and I have apologized to those where it's appropriate."

Politico, citing House aides, said the married father of two allegedly made unwanted advances toward a junior male staffer.

Massa slammed reports of the sexual nature of the harassment.

"Those kinds of articles, unsubstantiated, without factual backing, are a symptom of what's wrong with this city," he said. He also said he was entering a "a final phase" of his life.

The news came as a body blow to New York Democrats, who are already reeling under the weight of scandals all around the state.

A top Washington Democrat compared Massa, 50, to disgraced former GOP Rep. Mark Foley, who quit in 2006 amid charges of sending sexually explicit messages to male congressional pages.

"Massa just killed us," the Democrat said. "It's like what Foley did to them in the last cycle." That scandal tainted numerous Republicans who were accused of covering up for Foley.

Sources told The News that Massa's activities are being investigated, but Massa said yesterday he did not know if he was being looked at by the House ethics committee.

The freshman congressman barely defeated GOP Rep. Randy Kuhl to win his heavily Republican western New York district in 2008. He said he was announcing his retirement early to give others a chance to run.

But with no apparent replacement, it seems likely the GOP will take the seat back.

"Today, Eric Massa became the latest in a growing list of New York Democrats to abandon public life under a cloud," said state GOP Chairman Ed Cox. "With each passing day, it appears New York Democrats are being consumed by a culture of corruption."