THE number of British deaths that could be avoided through “good quality healthcare” has significantly increased, according to new official statistics.

So-called “amenable deaths” significantly increased from 71,656 in 2014 to 75,736 in 2016.

According to the ONS such deaths are “amenable (treatable) if, in the light of medical knowledge and technology available at the time of death, all or most deaths from that cause could be avoided through good quality healthcare”.

The leading cause of such deaths was cardiovascular diseases – such as strokes or heart attacks – which accounted for more than two fifths of all amenable deaths. Cancer was the second highest cause of amenable deaths in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, while respiratory diseases was the second-leading cause in Wales.