"Due to appendicitis, Sherri Shepherd underwent an emergency surgery yesterday," a rep for Shepherd said in a statement shared with PEOPLE. "The procedure was successful and Ms. Shepherd is doing fine and resting."
The statement continued, "She is absolutely devastated that she will not be able to guest host The Wendy Williams Show today, but she is following doctors orders and expected to make a full recovery. Replaced by Michael Rapaport on Monday.
Rapaport, 51, also explained Shepherd's absence at the start of Monday's show, telling the audience, "Sherri was supposed to host today, unfortunately, she had appendicitis."
"She's fine, she is fine, she had to go to the hospital last night for some emergency surgery," he said. "She's feeling fine today and she is resting. Get well soon Sherri, everybody loves you!"
Shepherd thanked Rapaport on Instagram after the show aired, writing, "If you watched the @WendyWilliams show today, you saw the news about my emergency surgery. Thanks to @MichaelRapaport for stepping in for me at the last minute!"
Shepherd has previously guest-hosted episodes of The Wendy Williams Show and is scheduled to be a guest host again in late January, as original host Wendy Williams remains absent due to ongoing health struggles.
