THE Late Show star Jon Batiste has taken time off to care for his wife Suleika Jaouad amid her brave cancer battle.

Jon, known for being the nightly bandleader and musical director on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, has been absent from the show since May 2022.

The 35-year-old musician has been spending most of his time caring for his wife, Suleika Jaouad.

The pair revealed to CBS Sunday Morning that they secretly married in February of 2022, just after Suleika was diagnosed with leukemia for a second time.

Suleika told correspondent Jim Axelrod: "We have known that we wanted to get married, I think, from the first week that we started dating.

"That's when Jon first brought up the topic of marriage to me. So, we've had eight years. This is not, you know, a hasty decision!"

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The 33-year-old writer revealed they got married the day before she was admitted to the hospital to undergo her bone marrow transplant.

After Jon confirmed to Axelrod they got married in February, he admitted their marriage was an act of "we have a future."

He explained: "It's an act of defiance. The darkness will try to overtake you, but just turn on the light.

"Focus on the light. Hold onto the light."

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Suleika noted that Jon made it clear he was not proposing due to her diagnosis.

She recounted Jon saying: "'It's taken me a year to design your ring.

"So, just know this timing has nothing to do with it. But what I do want you to know is that this diagnosis doesn't change anything. It just makes it all the clearer to me that I want to commit to this and for us to be together.'"

"But once we realized we had this tiny window before the bone marrow transplant, we decided to go for it," Suleika said on CBS Sunday Morning.

Battle with leukemia

Suleika, a native of New York City, was first diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia in 2011.

To fight the disease, Suleika underwent years of chemotherapy, enrolled in clinical trials, and received a bone marrow transplant, before she was declared cancer-free three years later.

However, in November 2021, the 33-year-old received the news that her cancer had returned – this time more aggressively.

Earlier this month, Jon opened up about his wife's leukemia battle and told PEOPLE she was "doing better."

He told the outlet: "Every single day we are praying and continuing the — I mean, she is incredible.

"You wouldn't think that she is going through what she's going through when you see her.

"She has this ability to take the toughest challenges and make it life-affirming. So, with her it's a special case. How she's doing, it's a Suleika thing."

The pair married in their new home, a place he described as "kind of a temple," with only their close family members around them.

Settling into a new home

Suleika updated fans with an Instagram post on April 22, revealing she finally was discharged "after a two-week stint back in the hospital" for bone marrow transplant complications and settling into her new Brooklyn apartment.

She added: "Hope has felt dangerous to me in the past—and in some ways, I remain a bit wary of it.

"But getting past the fear and stepping toward hope is what I have to do. I want to live a forward-looking life, anchoring myself in the things that are true and good and beautiful."

In another post, she shared a photo of her painting with watercolors – which allows her to "creatively engage with her circumstances."

Two weeks ago, Jon also updated his followers on social media with a collection of photos.

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He captioned the post: "Suleika and I are so grateful to be honored by the @bklynlibrary tonight for our musical and literary contributions!

"Though @suleikajaouad can’t attend tonight, I am very pleased to accept the award on our behalf and look forward addressing the community this evening."

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