The laboratory was dedicated to Dr. Joseph Sambrook, who had directed the research at James Laboratory for 16 years. His important and influential work on DNA tumor viruses gained long-term program support for CSHL from the National Cancer Institute. The 1985 Annual Report describes this support as “the backbone of our cancer effort here.” On January 1, 1972, CSHL became one of the first National Cancer Centers created as part of the NIH “War on Cancer” program. Dr. Sambrook was also proudly recognized for his ability to organize an extraordinarily talented group of co-workers who “made this Laboratory into a major, internationally recognized site for research on DNA tumor viruses.”