Roya Zarpak Sweeney, MD

MD, University of Queensland School of Medicine
MS, Johns Hopkins University
BS, Frostburg State University

Dr. Sweeney completed her MD at the University of Queensland in Australia, followed by residency in Anatomic and Clinical Pathology at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, DC where she served as Chief Resident. She then completed a two year fellowship in Transfusion Medicine at the NIH, where she also earned a Cellular Therapies Certificate from the AABB.

Dr. Sweeney has published in peer-reviewed journals with focus on various aspects of transfusion medicine, including massive transfusion practices, apheresis, cellular therapies, alpha gal syndrome, and quality improvement. She has contributed to research and clinical initiatives in blood utilization, transfusion reactions, transfusion safety, and hematopoietic cell collection efficiency, and has presented her work at national conferences and academic institutions.

Miller MJ; Zarpak R; Lee P; Osterwind Z; Lenz M; Argueta Guevara M; Fowler S; Price C; Shields TC; Livinski AA; Conry-Cantilena K; Stroncek D; West-Mitchell K; De Giorgi V. Alpha-Gal sensitization and allergic blood transfusion reactions: a scoping review. J. Transl. Med. 2025. Article in press.

Raymond C, Seyedmousavi A, Zelazny AM, Treat JD, Aneke C, Zarpak R, West-Mitchell K, Holland SM, Zerbe CS. Breaking the Mold: A Case of Invasive Medicopsis romeroi Pulmonary Infection with Innovative Granulocyte Treatment Strategy. ASM Case Rep. 2025;1(6):e00060-25. Doi: 10.1128/asmcr.00060-25 PMID: 41244279

Singh H, Gholami S, Kunkle B, Zarpak R, Rangnekar A. Rare case of hepatic amyloidosis in a patient with recurrent ascites. Am. J. Gastroenterol. 2023;118(10S):S2345-S2346. Doi: 0.14309/01.ajg.0000964060.04852.4f

Gilstad CW, Conry-Cantilena K, Zarpak R, Eder AF. An outbreak of anaphylactic transfusion reactions to group B plasma and platelets and its possible relationship to Alpha-Gal syndrome. Transfusion. 2023;63(10):1997-2000. doi: 10.1111/trf.17521. PMID: 37642435

Zarpak R, Choi, TD, Gilstad CW. Subclavian steal syndrome masquerading as hypotensive transfusion reaction. Transfusion. 2022;62:740. doi: 10.1111/trf.16817. PMID: 35150006

Guo L, Torii S, Fernandez R, Braumann RE, Fuller DT, Paek K, Gadhoke NV, Maloney KA, Harris K, Mayhew CM, Zarpak R, Stevens LM, Gaynor BJ, Jinnouchi H, Sakamoto A, Sato Y, Mori H, Kutyna MD, Lee PJ, Weinstein LM, Collado-Rivera CJ, Ali BB, Atmakuri DR, Dhingra R, Finn EL, Bell ME, Lynch M, Cornelissen A, Kuntz SH, Park J, Kutys R, Park J, Wang L, Hong SN, Gupta A, Hall JL, Kolodgie FD, Romero ME, Jeng LJ, Mitchell BD, Surve D, Fowler DR, Hong CC, Virmani R, Finn AV. Genetic Variants Associated with Unexplained Sudden Cardiac Death in Adult White and African American Individuals. JAMA Cardiol. 2021;6(9):1013-1022. doi: 10.1001/jamacardio.2021.1573. PMID: 34076677

Zarpak R, Sanchez OD, Joner M, Guy LG, Leclerc G, Virmani R. A novel ‘pro-healing’ approach: the COMBO dual therapy stent from a pathological view. Minerva Cardioangiol. 2015;63(1):31-43. PMID: 25502187

Sanchez OD, Yahagi K, Mori H, Zarpak R, Wittchow E, Foin N, Virmani R, Joner M. Pathological aspects of bioresorbable stent implantation. EuroIntervention. 2015;11 Suppl V:V159-V165. doi: 10.4244/EIJV11SVA39. PMID: 25983157

Yahagi K, Zarpak R, Kutys R, Ladich E, Fowler DR, Joner M, Virmani R. Multiple simultaneous plaque erosion in 3 coronary arteries. J Am Coll Cardiol Img. 2014;7(11):1172-1174. doi: 10.1016/j.jcmg.2014.08.005. PMID: 25459599

Zarpak R, Pineda CM, Verstraete R De Marchi L, Matsumoto CS, Gilstad CW. Blood Utilization in Liver Transplant Patients Transfused with Non-Pathogen Reduced vs Pathogen Reduced Platelets. Poster Presentation: Association for the Advancement of Blood and Biotherapies Annual Meeting: October 14-17, 2023; Nashville, TN. Abstract published in Transfusion. 2023;63 (S5) 225A-226A.

Zarpak R, Nithagon P, Gilstad CW. An Outbreak of Anaphylactic Reactions to Group B Platelet/Plasma and its Possible Relation to Alpha-Gal-Associated Meat Allergy. Poster Presentation: Association for the Advancement of Blood and Biotherapies Annual Meeting: October 14-17, 2023; Nashville, TN. Abstract published in Transfusion. 2023;63 (S5) 260A-261A.

Zarpak R, Gilstad CW. Why Two When one Will Do: A Review of the Appropriateness of Uncrossmatched Emergency Release Units at a Level II Trauma Center. Poster Presentation: Association for the Advancement of Blood and Biotherapies Annual Meeting: October 14-17, 2023; Nashville, TN. Abstract published in Transfusion. 2023;63 (S5) 322A-323A.

Kostyuk A, Zarpak R, Juma Y, Cui W. The Use of Pancreatic Tissue Biopsy to Predict the Islet Cell Count and Isolation Time During Total Pancreatectomy with Islet Autotransplantation. College of American Pathologists Annual Meeting: October 7-10, 2023; Chicago, IL. Abstract published in Arch Pathol Lab Med. 2023.;147(9):e102

Zarpak R, Pina BJ, Bahar B, Delaney M, Jacquot C. Impact of the April 2020 FDA Blood Donor Eligibility Changes on a Hospital-Based Donor Center. Poster Presentation: Association for the Advancement of Blood and Biotherapies Annual Meeting: October 17-19, 2021; Virtual. Abstract published in Transfusion. 2021;61(S3):49A-50A

Zarpak R, Alquist C, Cohen A, Dumani D. FFP as replacement fluid in desensitized combined liver/kidney transplant patients. Poster presentation: American Association of Blood Banks Annual Meeting: October 19-22, 2019; San Antonio, TX. Abstract published in Transfusion. 2019;59(S3):183A-184A