Vampire Diaries Co-Creator Julie Plec Reveals She Had a Cancerous Tumor on Her Kidney

Julie Plec, co-writer of The Vampire Diaries, is starting up about a cancerous tumor she had and the importance of early detection. During Saturday night’s Barbara Berlanti Heroes Gala, Plec, 50, prevalent the Barbara Berlanti Hero Award by using telling the story of a “buddy” who she said had blemishes on her face that were not recovery.

As she explained at the occasion at Santa Monica Barker Hangar, the spots on her face were revealed to be pre-cancerous by way of a dermatologist, so she then paid $four,000 for a body test. That scan discovered a cancerous tumor on her kidney, and he or she had to get her kidney eliminated.

Plec then shared that the “pal” became her. While she wasn’t affected by any symptoms, she equated the early detection to “getting hit with the aid of lightning, in a great manner,” noting she was thankful she had the approach for the scan. As a end result, she donated $100,000 to F— Cancer, to help those who don’t have the capability to come up with the money for such early detection.

“Well, I’ll tell you, it intended loads and a half years in the past once I turned into first informed,” Plec told PEOPLE of the award’s importance. “We were all prepared for the occasion in March of 2020. And then just needed to put a pin in it for some time. So I’ve had several years to sincerely contemplate my which means in this earth and my gratitude. I’m in reality commemorated.”

Surprise Dawson’s Creek reunion with Joshua Jackson (looking chic in baby blue Gucci) + Kevin Williamson. Posing with honoree Julie Plec. pic.twitter.com/mGyVJXsO86

— Chris Gardner (@chrissgardner) October 2, 2022

Also at the gala, Plec talked to PEOPLE about the success of her works new and old, in particular the Peacock original collection Vampire Academy, which premiered on Sept. 15.

The series hit the streaming platform 8 years after the 2014 film of the same call, and features Daniela Nieves, Sisi Stringer, and greater, with Plec serving as collection co-author.

“What changed into maximum attractive about those books I suppose had been that it had a virtually first-rate, powerful social justice thread strolling beneath the tale,” she informed PEOPLE.

“It’s a story approximately a society that has been stuck in its methods for possibly too long.  And two fine pals, younger women that commemorate their very own friendship by using taking a stand and status up towards a society that does not actually need them to be great buddies because they are from extraordinary social lessons.

So happy to attend the Heroes Gala tonight in support of fuck cancer and @julieplec who received the Hero Award 💖💖 pic.twitter.com/sQg71H8ZIZ

— Daniela Nieves (@_danielanieves) October 2, 2022

And so I’ve commenced looking to make sure the entirety I do has just a little trace of a reflection on the sector that we’re in, the sector that we need to be in.

And so this became a real treat with a view to do this.”

Plec also elaborated on her HBO Max series Girls at the Bus, which become stimulated by means of a chapter in Amy Chozick’s e book Chasing Hillary.

The political drama collection, which has yet to announce a launch date, will star Carla Gugino, Melissa Benoist, Natasha Behnam and Christina Elmore in what Plec calls “a hard work of affection for pretty some time.” With one episode down already along Greg Berlanti, she calls it “smart and fiercely humorous.”

“We form of wrote it nonetheless residing in a publish-traumatic bubble of getting just watched Hillary Clinton lose the election,” she stated.

“And now some of these years later, what we’re writing approximately is what is the reason of journalism and press on this modern time. What is journalism with and without bias? How do you get the reality out? How do you fight folks who don’t want to agree with the reality? And it is no longer a lot approximately, are you a Democrat, are you Republican? It’s like, are you willing to stand up for what’s genuine and what is right? And it really is kind of wherein we need the sector to go, I assume. So we’re seeking to rejoice that within the show.”

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