CBS News was mourning the loss of Ana Real, an award-winning international journalist who passed away Tuesday at age 60 after a long fight against leukemia.

Ana, Foreign Editor for Prime Time, joined CBS News in 2001, developing strong bonds throughout the institution.

Ana Real CBS News

CBS News president Susan Zirinsky said Wednesday, "Ana was part of the heart and soul of this organization. It didn't matter if you were an executive, a producer, a production associate. She stood up for you and made all of us better at our jobs."

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She added: "Be nice to everyone today — be nice to the people you like and the people you may not like. Because that's what Ana would want."

In an email to the news division sharing the news, Ingrid Ciprian-Matthews, executive vice president of Strategic Professional Development at CBS News, wrote: "Ana wore her passion on her sleeve. Her love of life, family, friends and her passion for this venerable craft made her a force of nature. She's left her mark at CBS News, her news home since joining in January 2001. Her contributions touched every broadcast and the lists of 'gets' credited to her perseverance and rich network of contacts ranged from Dan Rather's interview with Saddam Hussein in 2003 to CBS' unrivaled coverage of Mexican warlord Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman Loera."

CBS News national correspondent Manuel Bojorquez tweeted: "Ana Real lit up every room, made every story she touched infinitely better, was caring and nurturing while at the same time a force of nature. There will be no replacing her, only honoring her through the type of journalism she loved."

Ana, who was born and raised in Nicaragua and lived in New Jersey, was a critical part in the network's original reporting on such stories as the young survivors of the earthquake in Haiti and the questionable practices of international adoptions which garnered her an Emmy. As CBS News Foreign News editor, she managed teams of journalists around the globe reporting for "CBS This Morning," "CBS Evening News," "48 Hours," "Face the Nation, "CBS Sunday Morning," "60 Minutes," CBSN, and all CBS News platforms.

She earned two News & Documentary Emmy Awards for her work.

Earlier in her career, Ana was based in Peru as a journalist for the news service Worldwide Television News, which later became APTN, under the Associated Press.

Ana is survived by her husband, Miguel, and her children Carolina and Miguel, who is a show director at CBSN.