[4] Sunn's father was a beach boy, a term for men who were some mix of a lifeguard, surfing instructor, and tourist guide.
Sunn continued to surf daily despite the pain from bouts of chemotherapy, radiation treatments, medications and the financial toll associated with the disease.
[7] Following her diagnosis, Sunn became a radio disc jockey and surf reporter, a physical therapist at a Waianae care home, and a counselor at a cancer research center.
Over the next 14 years, her cancer went into remission three times, and she underwent a mastectomy and a bone marrow transplant[8] but the disease eventually spread to her brain.
[citation needed] In 1997, an award-winning documentary about Sunn's life, Heart of the Sea, was filmed by Charlotte Lagarde and Lisa Denker.
[5] Dave Wronski, lead guitarist of Slacktone, composed an instrumental surf rock tune, "Rell Sunn Aloha", in her honor.