How Julia Louis-Dreyfus Feels After Fighting Cancer Can Be Explained In One Word

It hasn't been an easy year for the Veep star, but in an interview with People published on Wednesday, Julia Louis-Dreyfus opened up about fighting cancer by shining a positive light on her situation. It's been almost exactly one year since Louis-Dreyfus announced her cancer diagnosis and now the actor is "feeling well" after returning to work. Not to mention, the acclaimed Emmy winner is beyond "grateful" for where she's at currently.

In her interview with People, Louis-Dreyfus said,

"I’m grateful to be alive. I’m grateful for my heroic husband and our lovely young boys, or young men, I should say, who are our boys. And my friends and family. I’m grateful I have the life I have."

She later added,

"I am very grateful to my Veep crew — all of them, cast, writers, crew, everybody above and below the line — who have waited out this period of time. But I’m feeling good and feeling quite ready and delighted to focus on funny things as opposed to things that aren’t quite so funny."

On Sept. 28, 2017, Louis-Dreyfus first tweeted about her cancer fight, but her message also served as a call to action. "1 in 8 women get breast cancer," her tweet began. "Today, I'm the one. The good news is that I have the most glorious group of supportive and caring family and friends, and fantastic insurance through my union. The bad news is that not all women are so lucky, so let's fight all cancers and make universal health care a reality."

Throughout her battle, not only did she receive amazing support from her Veep costars, but Louis-Dreyfus remained positive. Time and again, she made it clear that she wouldn't let the disease steal her sense of humor.

In October 2017, the former Seinfeld star posted an Instagram of herself in a black hoodie, sunglasses, and sporting a drawn-on mustache. Next to the image, she wrote, "Chemo #2: finito. We are NOT f*cking around here. 'I’ve got the eye of the tiger. The Fighter dancing through the fire cuz I am a champion and your’re going to hear me ROAR.' Thanks to @mrtonyhale & @timothycsimons & @katyperry for their hilarious and loving inspiration."

The way she's handled her cancer fight has been inspiring, to say the least. First of all, she announced her illness by shedding a light on the health care system problems that currently exist in the United States. Secondly, she refused to allow cancer to stop her from being funny or making others laugh. Of course, her choosing to find comfort in comedy during such a difficult time never meant Louis-Dreyfus wasn't scared, but simply that she wanted to fight the uphill battle in a beautiful and uplifting way.

After surgery and multiple rounds of treatment (her last chemo treatment was in January), to hear how well Louis-Dreyfus is doing is truly wonderful. It's probably safe to say that her family, her friends, her costars, and her fans are also "grateful" for her current state of health.