Cancer survivor gets hug from Joe Jonas during Jonas Brothers concert

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO/Gray News) - An Ohio woman celebrated her victory over cancer by getting a hug from Joe Jonas during their Sept. 18 performance in Cleveland, Ohio.

Emily Pugliese, 28, says she entered remission for her Stage 2 Hodgkin’s lymphoma on Aug. 30. She received her diagnosis on Dec. 30, 2022.

In means of celebration, along with her then upcoming Sept. 5 birthday, Pugliese got tickets to see the Jonas Brothers.

“Having been a long-time Jonas Brothers fan, I couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate,” Pugliese said. “It was the perfect way to celebrate!”

Pugliese made a sign that read “I BEAT CANCER. CELEBRATE! with me tonight,” a play on one of the band’s songs.

Joe Jonas saw the sign and Pugliese said she couldn’t ever have expected what happened next.

Joe Jonas called her to the front of the stage and announced to all the fans in attendance that she beat cancer, then jumped off the stage to hug her and share words of encouragement.

“I was in awe and emotion took over,” Pugliese said, adding that she had rarely gone out in public during her cancer treatments. “I was being welcomed back to the world by 20,000 people and the Jonas Brothers! It blew my mind.”

Pugliese said that while being in remission was the best news, the interaction with the multi-award-winning group was “the cherry on top.”

“I was living in the darkest time of my life, and this concert burst such a bright light into my life,” she said. “The happiness I felt and continue to feel is confirmation that the brighter days ahead I had always wished for are here.”

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