Burst Cyst Derails Plans

JoJo Siwa is opening up about a frightening health scare after an unexpected rush to the hospital left fans worried and briefly put her performance plans in jeopardy. The 22-year-old entertainer revealed she had been quietly battling escalating stomach pain for days before it suddenly became unbearable.

The timing couldn’t have been worse: Siwa was preparing for a major appearance at the Mall of America when the pain intensified, prompting her to rest in hopes it would subside. Instead, her discomfort grew so sharply that she alerted her mother and ultimately sought emergency medical help.

Doctors later discovered the cause — a burst ovarian cyst that had begun bleeding into her abdomen, a diagnosis that explained the stabbing, movement-triggered pain she’d been trying to push through. Siwa later told fans that “one of her ovaries had a cyst on it that burst and was bleeding into [her] stomach,” a moment she described as frightening and intensely painful.

Remarkably, she was discharged within hours, determined to keep her commitment to perform her new holiday single at the mall. Though not fully recovered, she assured fans she would monitor her symptoms closely and return for follow-up testing.

The health scare comes shortly after a milestone moment with her boyfriend, Love Island U.K. alum Chris Hughes. The pair recently made their red-carpet debut at the Dancers Against Cancer 2025 Gala, where Hughes surprised Siwa by presenting her with the Humanitarian Award—a public nod to her philanthropic work and to the couple’s increasingly serious relationship.