In 2002, Varinaitis was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer while seven months pregnant with her daughter, Ashlyn. After her first brain surgery the same year, she was given a prognosis of 18 months to live. Defying all medical expectations, she lived for more than 16 years, fighting her way back from three brain surgeries, 80 rounds of chemotherapy, two rounds of radiation and countless hospital. She died on August 30, 2018 at her home in Malibu at the age of 47.