'Veep' Julia Louis-Dreyfus Reveals Battle With Breast Cancer

Los Angeles: Award-winning Veep star Julia Louis-Dreyfus revealed on Thursday that she has breast cancer.

The 56-year-old American actress disclosed the diagnosis to her 750,000 Twitter followers, posting a picture of a printed note that read: "One in eight women get breast cancer. Today, I'm the one."

"The good news is that I have the most glorious group of supportive and caring friends, and fantastic insurance through my union," she continued.

"The bad news is that not all women are so lucky, so let's fight all cancers and make universal health care a reality."

Louis-Dreyfus, who has two children with actor Brad Hall, attached an image of the note to a tweet in which she wrote: "Just when you thought..."

The news comes less than two weeks after the Veep star won a sixth consecutive Emmy for comedy acting.

A native New Yorker of French stock, Louis-Dreyfus has been one of America's most popular and influential comedy actors since she found fame with cult sitcom Seinfeld in the 1990s.

On Veep she plays a somewhat bumbling vice president who later becomes the acting president, despite her hapless staff making political blunders along the way.

She has six consecutive best actress Emmys for Veep as well as three as an executive producer when it was awarded best comedy series.

She has won in the past for her roles on Seinfeld — which also earned her a Golden Globe — and The New Adventures of Old Christine.

It has been a rollercoaster year or so for the actress, who tearfully dedicated her acting Emmy in 2016 to her father, who passed away two days earlier.

"I am so glad that he liked Veep,'" she said, her voice breaking down as she accepted the award. "Because his opinion was the one that really mattered."

Veep recently announced that the seventh season of the HBO show, due to air in 2018, will be its last.

Among the people expressing support for Louis-Dreyfus after her cancer revelation was former vice president Joe Biden, whose son Beau died of brain cancer in 2015 at age 46.

"We Veeps stick together. Jill and I, and all of the Bidens, are with you, Julia," Biden wrote, referring to his wife.

He attached a photo from a comic video in which he and Louis-Dreyfus spoofed the White House Correspondents Dinner in 2014.

"Yes we do. Love back to all of you," the actress replied.

"Our love and support go out to Julia and her family at this time. We have every confidence she will get through this with her usual tenacity and undaunted spirit, and look forward to her return to health and to HBO for the final season of VEEP," HBO said in a statement.

Louis-Dreyfus received the diagnosis the day after the Emmys aired, and it played no part in the previously announced decision to end the show after next season, HBO said.

HBO said on September 6 that the comedy's producers decided to bring it to a close after season seven, with an air date yet to be announced.

Veep writers will continue working on scripts and production will be adjusted as needed, HBO said.