NEW YORK – Leslie Charleson, known for her role as Monica Quartermaine on “General Hospital,” has died at age 79.

Social media accounts for the ABC medical soap opera announced her death on Sunday evening.

“Leslie was a beloved matriarch to the entire cast and crew,” reads the post signed by the show’s executive producer Frank Valentini. “I will miss our daily conversations, her quick wit and her incredible presence on set. On behalf of everyone at General Hospital, my deepest condolences go out to their loved ones during this difficult time.”

No cause of death was given, but The Hollywood Reporter said she had been “battling an illness for some time.”

Born in Kansas City, Missouri, Charleson began acting as a child and in high school before studying theater at Bennett College in upstate New York, according to IMDb.

She was on “General Hospital” for almost 50 years. The series started in 1963 and ran for 62 seasons with over 15,000 episodes. Charleson was featured in over 2,000 of them.

She was also a prominent character in Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing in the ’60s, playing Iris Donnelly.

Charleson has been nominated for four Daytime Emmy Awards, four Soap Opera Digest Awards and two Soap Hub Awards for her work on General Hospital.