Science in the Service of Health

About Sanford Burnham Prebys

Since 1976, Sanford Burnham Prebys has been dedicated to pushing biomedical discoveries faster and further toward clinical treatment and therapies that improve human lives. 

As a leading nonprofit biomedical research institute, our collaborative approach and pioneering research has produced breakthroughs in cancer, neuroscience, immunology and children’s diseases.

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2024 Impact Report

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Our deep expertise in fundamental biology and modern technologies, such as data science and AI, make us one of the most innovative and comprehensive drug discovery centers in the world, anchored by an NCI-designated cancer center. 

Located in the heart of San Diego’s global research hub, we collaborate with regional, national and international institutions in academia and industry, and partner with established and startup biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies to advance basic research to clinical trials and  treatments. 

At the same time, our graduate school and education programs inspire and train future scientists to become tomorrow’s innovators and leaders in biomedical research, clinical care and improving health and lives.

Our History

It all began in La Jolla, when William Harold Fishman, MD, PhD, (1914-2001) and his wife Lillian Waterman Fishman (1915-2013),  leased space from Scripps Research in a renovated house on South Coast Boulevard. It would be the first home for the new La Jolla Cancer Research Foundation. They hired five employees. Their science—and vision—continued.

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