NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. — Authorities say the remains of a missing woman from Alfred, Maine, have been found in Florida.

Pasco County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Eddie Daniels Jr. said in an email Saturday that Judith Therianos’ remains were discovered Thursday night in a wooded area near a highway in New Port Richey.

A medical examiner confirmed Therianos’ identity, but Daniels said the cause and date of her death have not yet been determined.

Therianos, 52, had not been seen since March 14. Daniels said she left Maine with a friend in February to visit the Tampa Bay area, and she eventually arrived in the New Port Richey area to see another friend.

Therianos went to Tampa to spend time with a friend who had been diagnosed with cancer, according to family and friends.

Therianos’ sister, Jennifer Scammon of Saco, contacted Maine State Police on March 19, saying she believed her sister was missing. Maine State Police then notified police in Florida.

Longtime friend Glenda Cook of Sanford said late last month that she and Therianos last spoke by phone on March 11.

“It’s unlike her to not make contact,” Cook said then. “Someone, somewhere must know where she is.”

Therianos grew up in Maine and graduated from Massabesic High School in 1981, her sister said.

Attempts to contact detectives with the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office for more information were unsuccessful Saturday night, as was an attempt to contact Therianos’ sister in Saco.

The sheriff’s office in Florida said it is investigating.