An emotional reunion at Temple University Hospital Thursday, where a former patient was able to thank the teams that helped save her life.

Zipporah Washington, 34, was in nursing school last year when she felt stabbing pains in her chest and was diagnosed with advanced Non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

"Very overwhelming, and it was devastating because all I wanted to do was go to school," Washington said.

But there were complications. That's when she was transferred to Temple Hospital.

"The cancer had invaded her heart, and we needed to make sure that we protect it as we treat it at the same time," said Dr. Eman Hamad, a heart failure and transplant specialist at Temple Hospital.

Washington's care included many teams from oncology, cardiology and intensive care.

"It is really a journey of hope, resilience, and the best example of patient-centered care," Hamad said.

Washington's two main ICU nurses, Nathalie Nelson-Sealey and Robin Johnson, became especially close to her.  

"And seeing her today, it surely is that miracle still happens. She is a miracle," Nelson-Sealey said.

"Being able to see somebody who was as sick as she was, being able to come here and reunite with us, it's heartwarming," Johnson said.

Washington had four months of intensive chemotherapy while continuing her nursing studies.

"It just helped me to appreciate the field of nursing a lot more and to also understand what it's like to be a patient," Washington said.

In June, with her children by her side, Washington celebrated her final round of chemo — ringing the bell that coincided with her graduation from nursing school.

"Positivity helped me a lot through my journey, so I want to share that with other people," Washington said.

Inspired by her experience at Temple, Washington says she's thinking about a career as a pediatric oncology nurse. Doctors say she's in remission and her heart function is back to normal.