Lewis was diagnosed with uterine cancer in June 1998. After her diagnosis, she insisted on taping the last episode of The Charlie Horse Music Pizza. She had previously been treated for breast cancer in 1984. The doctors informed Shari that the cancer was inoperable. She had a hysterectomy and was given six weeks to live. After recovering from the hysterectomy, she began chemotherapy at Cedars-Sinai Hospital. While undergoing chemotherapy, she developed viral pneumonia and died on August 2, 1998, at the age of 65. Her body was cremated. She was survived by her husband, daughter, and sister. After her death The Charlie Horse Music Pizza was canceled. The last episode of "The Charlie Horse Music Pizza" aired on January 17, 1999.