Pebble House is a good start, but there's also a group called "Ribbon no Kai" that meets near Takadanobaba station on the second Saturday of most months. It's run by a nurse who used to work on the pediatric oncology ward at National Cancer Center Hospital, so she really gets the transplant experience specifically. The group skews a bit younger, mostly people who were diagnosed in their teens or early twenties.

For volunteering, you might have better luck going through the Tokyo Bone Marrow Foundation directly rather than JMDP's main office. They have a desk on the third floor of the Tokyo Medical Center building in Meguro and they're more flexible about volunteer schedules. I know a guy who does their donor recruitment talks at universities and he said they're always looking for people who can actually speak about their own transplant experience in Japanese.

There's also a LINE group that formed out of the "Cancer Navi" app's user meetups. It's not huge but they organize casual dinners in Shimokitazawa about once a month. If you search for "キャンサーナビ 東京 交流会" on Twitter you might find someone who can add you.

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fwiw there's a smaller group called "Hospice Friends" that meets at a community center in Kichijoji, near the park entrance on the south side. it's not cancer-specific but a lot of the younger members are transplant survivors, and they do casual stuff like hanami picnics or just hanging at a cafe in the station complex. the vibe is pretty chill, no agenda really

for volunteering, the Japan Marrow Donor Program has a satellite desk at St. Luke's International Hospital in Tsukiji, not the main office in Minato. they do donor registration drives in the lobby on weekday afternoons sometimes, and they let volunteers help with the paperwork if you show up and ask for the coordinator, a woman named Sato. she's been there for years and knows the transplant community well

also there's a LINE open chat called "東京骨髄バンクボランティア" that's mostly used for coordinating events, not really a social group but you can find people to grab a drink with after a drive. i found it through a flyer at the Tokyo Medical Center in Meguro, so maybe check their bulletin board too

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there's a place called "kanwa care cafe" in yotsuya that hosts casual meetups for young survivors, more of a drop-in thing than a structured group. they do art therapy sessions too, which is a nice way to ease into talking about stuff without it being too heavy. i think it's run by a social worker who had leukemia herself so she gets the transplant side

for the bone marrow bank angle, the tokyo medical and dental university hospital in bunkyo has a small patient-led volunteer network that helps with their donor drives. the coordinator there is a guy named tanaka-san who had a transplant in 2019, he's pretty easy to reach through the hospital's patient support desk on the first floor. they do events in kichijoji and ikebukuro sometimes

also check the "warabe" community space in nakano, they have a bulletin board with flyers for survivor meetups that don't always make it online. i found a monthly cooking group for transplant patients there once, it was mostly older folks but they were welcoming

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solid itinerary, the teamLab tip about midday slots is spot on. for day 3, instead of heading straight to Odaiba from Tsukiji, take a 10-minute walk to Hamarikyu Gardens. it's this old daimyo garden right on the water, total contrast to the market chaos. you can catch a water bus from there to Odaiba, it goes under Rainbow Bridge and drops you right by the ferris wheel. costs about 600 yen extra but the boat ride is worth it on a clear day.

also for day 1, the Met Govt Building deck is free and has solid views but the queue for the elevators can get long around sunset. there's a smaller viewing spot on the 45th floor of the Shinjuku Center Building that most tourists miss, same free entry and way shorter lines. just a 5 min walk from the station west exit.

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This is a solid itinerary. I'd suggest swapping the order of day one a bit. Meiji Jingu is right next to Harajuku, so you can hit the shrine first thing when it's quiet, then walk through the grounds and come out right at Harajuku station to avoid backtracking. The Yurikamome Line ride to Odaiba on day three is a great call, the views from the driverless train over Rainbow Bridge are a highlight in themselves.

One thing the guide doesn't mention is that the Tsukiji Outer Market has really pushed up prices for tourists, especially for sushi. If you want a more local and less crowded experience, head to the Uogashi area right behind the main market stalls. You'll find the same quality grilled seafood and tamagoyaki for a couple hundred yen less. Also, for the teamLab booking, the 9am or 10am slots sell out first, so grab a midday entry if you want to avoid the school groups.

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for day 2, if you're at sensoji that early, walk through the back of the temple grounds to the small cemetery area. it's quiet and has a great view of the pagoda without all the selfie sticks. also, ueno park's museums are good but the national museum of nature and science has a really cool exhibit on the history of tokyo's subway system with old train cars you can walk through. my kid loved it more than the zoo.

the guide mentions cash but i'd add that some of the best food stalls in ameyoko only take coins and don't have prices posted. just point at what looks good and hand over a 500 yen coin, they'll give you change. i got a huge plate of grilled scallops that way for 400 yen and it was better than any sit-down place i tried

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