Noble goal, and I’d suggest the book Basic Immunology, but I’d also warn you, cancer might be a famously difficult disease, but the number of treatments is vast, thus it is difficult to market a new one, because oncologists are overwhelmed by options. There’s an idea for your ML buddy: just imagine rather than make new treatments, you could help docs pick existing treatments from the sea of complex options...
I personally read Janeway in 2014 when I learned about the problem and started helping with ML models. But the fund isn't mine; it will be run by the leader in the field. He's already heavily invested in a nonprofit that provides physicians and patients with information about leading-edge therapies: https://www.ucir.org/.
Link to an article on the topic: https://medium.com/bit-pharma/how-do-you-deal-with-cancer-3e...