Madeleine K. Albright, the first woman to serve as U.S. Secretary of State, passed away on Wednesday (March 23). She was 84.

According to a statement from her family, Albright died from cancer.

“We are heartbroken to announce that Dr. Madeleine K. Albright, the 64th U.S. Secretary of State and first woman to hold that position, passed away earlier today,” the statement, tweeted from Albright’s Twitter account, reads. “The cause was cancer. She was surrounded by family and friends. We have lost a loving mother, grandmother, sister, aunt and friend.”

The statement goes on to list Albright’s accomplishments and detail how she was a trailblazer for women in American politics.

“A tireless champion of democracy and human rights, she was at the time of her death a professor at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, chair of Albright Stonebridge Group, part of Dentons Global Advisors, chair of Albright Capital Management, president of the Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation, chair of the National Democratic Institute, chair of the U.S. Defense Policy Board, and an author,” the statement reads.

Madeleine Albright was nominated for Secretary of State by President Bill Clinton and served in the role from 1997 to 2001.

In a State Department briefing on Wednesday, spokesperson Ned Price said President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken have been notified of her death.

Later in the day, Vice President Kamala Harris issued a statement that spoke of Albright as a “mentor and a friend” specifically referencing the first time she met Albright as a young lawyer in San Francisco.

“From the beginning, she was generous with her time, support, and advice. She was able to balance strength and compassion, and her deep empathy has been a constant source of inspiration throughout my own career.

The world lost a brilliant and beloved leader today. But Secretary Albright’s legacy will live on through the lives she touched. I will miss her.”