Ran lab to study tumor formation, spread Tumor cells use thin-walled lymphatic vessels to travel and spread in the human body. Once cancer spreads, a patient’s prognosis dims. SIU research scientist Sophia Ran, PhD, is working to stop the spread of breast cancer. She has been awarded a five-year grant from the National Cancer Institute, a division of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to study ways to prevent or reduce the metastasis in breast cancer. Ran is a professor of medical microbiology, immunology and cell biology at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine and member of