According to IMS Health (NYSE: RX [1]), global sales of cancer drugs will grow at a compounded annual rate of 12-15%, nearing $80 billion by 2012.

Improved diagnosis and equipment, as well as international growth are all drivers behind this increase in oncology therapies. Investors tired of financial fickleness and the growing cost of crude, are migrating to the biotech sector composed of multi-billion dollar budgets and companies such as Genentech, the producer of Avastin, a promising colorectal cancer drug.

The need for cancer drugs is undeniable and an area with tremendous growth, but are biotechs worthy of the safe haven title?

Investors may be putting money into the sector as witnessed by the (NYSE: XLV [2]) ETF. This is the SPDR Select Sector ETF that tracks companies involved in health care equipment and supplies, health care providers and services, biotechnology, and pharmaceuticals industries. Pfizer Inc., Johnson & Johnson, and Merck & Co., Inc. are included in this sector’s mix.

Jim Cramer, whose opinions we feature on our ONN.tv [3] show, Mad About Options, called the biotech company, Celgene, “a buy” and advised investing in the sector amidst a slowing economy.

My best options trade in the past year was in fact a Celegene play where I made 400% on some calls as the stock moved from $60 to $75 last fall. Then in December the company ran into some trouble and the stock saw large selling down to the $45 area. Now, it is back up to $75 and could be poised for a significant breakout. The stock actually made a new all-time high of $77.38 last week.

Some investors who have owned the stock for a while may be looking to sell covered calls against their holdings. And if you like the company and its fundamentals in this sector and environment, you may wish to establish a buy-write, where you buy stock and sell calls against it in a 1-to-1 ratio. Look for yields above 10% if possible, where the premium you are collecting for selling calls is at least 10% of the current stock price to capture the most reward for your risk. As always, check with your broker or financial advisor before making any option investment or trade.

 ONN.tv [4]