Ms Kirwan, a mother of five who currently lives in Darwin, was diagnosed with her first melanoma in her 30s when Mrs Ratahi was just three years old.

After surgery, Ms Kirwan thought her biggest battle was behind her, but two more melanomas were later discovered as well as various other skin cancers.

At the time of her first diagnosis, Mrs Ratahi, of Wagga, was too young to be able to understand the toll melanoma took on her mother, but today the mother and daughter share the same passion for promoting skin protection.

With her melanomas in hard-to-access places, like on her ear and close to her eye, it was easy for Ms Kirwan to miss some spots when applying sunscreen.

It is for that reason, and many others, the powerhouse duo came up with their business Sunnybod, selling refillable sunscreen brushes all over the country.

"One of Mum's melanomas was actually quite close to her eye, it was right up in the corner and she had a secondary cancer right up in her, sort of, eyelash line," Mrs Ratahi said.

"If you think about sunscreen application and especially applying to little faces, it's really, really tricky to get in and around those areas, ears as well, and again, that's another place where my mum had another melanoma.

"The brush does a really great job of getting to those spots and it just makes the application process much more enjoyable for the kids."

With Ms Kirwan being diagnosed at a young age and the damage likely done to her skin while spending her youthful years out in the sun, the pair are placing an emphasis on protecting children.

"I think in Australia at the moment, there's still quite a culture of tanning, you know, into the teenage years and things," Mrs Ratahi said.

"We did a trip recently to Sydney and took the kids to the beach, to Bondi Beach and it's so surprising the amount of young Australians, I guess who are still out on the beach lathered in sun tan oil and trying to tan their skin.

"So for us, it's really just trying to encourage parents and, I guess, make it easy for parents to apply sunscreen and reapply sunscreen."

Mrs Ratahi said it was important residents were also vigilant when it came to re-applying sunscreen and not rely on sunscreen alone for protection.

"The other sun safety messages are long sleeves, hats - broad hats - and sunglasses and seeking shade in the peak hours of the day," she said.

"I think all of that's important and I feel like at the moment we're probably not doing enough of that yet."

Residents should also be getting regular skin checks. Ms Kirwan now has her skin checked every six months.

According to the Cancer Institute NSW Australia while the Riverina isn't listed as a hot spot for melanoma, Australia is one overall.

A spokesperson for the Cancer Institute NSW said Australia had one of the highest rates of skin cancer in the world, and in NSW the UV levels mean skin protection was recommended most of the year - even on cloudy or overcast days.