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Chinese businesswoman Chen Yili paid a South Korean hospital thousands of dollars to reshape her face in the hope she would look more like the glamorous stars she saw on television.
Instead she says she was disfigured by the operation—one of a growing number of Chinese women who claim 1）shoddy procedures and a lack of regulation in South Korea’s booming “medical tourism” industry， have left them physically scarred.
“They said they would design my face to look like a South Korean， and help me design a new nose， lips and chin， but （afterwards） when my friends saw my nose they were all shocked. They said it was 2）crooked （and） ugly，” Chen said.
Seoul on Friday announced a crackdown on illegal 3）brokers and unregistered clinics in a bid to protect medical tourists， especially those drawn by the country’s huge plastic surgery industry.
The country is a cultural powerhouse in Asia—its soap operas and pop music videos are massively popular in China and often feature cosmetically-enhanced stars.
While China’s domestic plastic surgery market is worth tens of billions of dollars， persistent safety concerns are driving growing numbers of wealthy consumers abroad.
South Korea has pushed hard to foster its so-called“medical tourism” industry， which was worth the equivalent of nearly $360 million in 2013， according to official figures.
China topped the medical tourist list with more than 25，400 visitors， an increase of 70 percent from the previous year according to the South Korean health ministry.
Chinese tourists generally pay more than twice as much as locals for cosmetic procedures， Chinese newspaper Southern Weekly reported this month.
Dozens of South Korean clinics have Chinese-language websites， some offering surgery alongside sightseeing vacations， with promotions offered during Chinese holidays.
One clinic promises to provide “almond shaped eyes” and a “magical V-shaped face”—considered the ideal of feminine beauty in much of East Asia. Another is seemingly full of glowing testimonials from past patients.
While most procedures in South Korea appear to occur without incident， last month attention focused on the industry after a 50-year-old Chinese woman was left in a coma by a clinic in Seoul’s up-market Gangnam district.
As much as a third of Chinese patients’ costs can go towards fees for brokers who act as 4）liaisons for the hospitals. Chen said after making initial enquiries she was contacted “incessantly” by an agent and felt 5）cajoled into having the surgery. She spent more than $26，000 dollars on the surgery in 2010 at the Beauty Line clinic in Seoul. One of her procedures involved having 6）cartilage taken from her chest and added to her nose to make it more prominent.
But upon returning to China， she began to suffer from nasal infections. Now staying at a clinic in Beijing， she says her mental health suffered and she is taking 12 7）antidepressants a day.
“I’ve lost sleep， I can’t meet with friends， and I suffer from depression， because my nose is just too ugly，” she said.
“I feel tricked. I think the industry is protected by （South Korea’s） government， because it’s a key source of revenue，” she added.
Park Ji-Hye， an official at South Korea’s health ministry， told 8）AFP that “activities involving illegal brokers and inflated fees， as well as disputes over 9）malpractice， are sparking complaints from foreign patients.”
Hoping to bring the industry into line， authorities last Friday declared that owners of unregistered facilities treating foreign patients could be punished with jail sentences.
“Some clinics are treating Chinese patients without a state license allowing them to treat foreign patients， because obviously that’s where the money is，” said Cho Soo-Young， spokesman for the association of Korean plastic surgeons.
Back in China， an online 10）support group made up of hundreds of victims of alleged 11）botched cosmetic procedures done in South Korea has begun a campaign to highlight these problems.
“You start to believe that cosmetic surgery is something magical that can change your life. We have to take some responsibility ourselves， for not understanding the industry， and being too trusting，” said group organiser Jin Weikun.
Many women in the group added that clinics had not warned them of potential risks.
Winnie Wang， 45， said she was “devastated， cried and even attempted suicide” after an operation in 2013 left her with unequally sized eyes.
Yu Lijun， a designer， underwent one of the most controversial procedures at Seoul’s Faceline clinic—“doublejaw” surgery—which involves cutting the bone to produce a slimmer jawline. Today her mouth is visibly 12）misaligned， making it hard to eat and prompting her to wear a facemask at all times.
But Faceline disputed this， saying Yu had been through two botched surgeries in China that had left her mouth crooked before coming to them for help fixing it.
Instead she says she was disfigured by the operation—one of a growing number of Chinese women who claim 1）shoddy procedures and a lack of regulation in South Korea’s booming “medical tourism” industry， have left them physically scarred.
“They said they would design my face to look like a South Korean， and help me design a new nose， lips and chin， but （afterwards） when my friends saw my nose they were all shocked. They said it was 2）crooked （and） ugly，” Chen said.
Seoul on Friday announced a crackdown on illegal 3）brokers and unregistered clinics in a bid to protect medical tourists， especially those drawn by the country’s huge plastic surgery industry.
The country is a cultural powerhouse in Asia—its soap operas and pop music videos are massively popular in China and often feature cosmetically-enhanced stars.
While China’s domestic plastic surgery market is worth tens of billions of dollars， persistent safety concerns are driving growing numbers of wealthy consumers abroad.
South Korea has pushed hard to foster its so-called“medical tourism” industry， which was worth the equivalent of nearly $360 million in 2013， according to official figures.
China topped the medical tourist list with more than 25，400 visitors， an increase of 70 percent from the previous year according to the South Korean health ministry.
Chinese tourists generally pay more than twice as much as locals for cosmetic procedures， Chinese newspaper Southern Weekly reported this month.
Dozens of South Korean clinics have Chinese-language websites， some offering surgery alongside sightseeing vacations， with promotions offered during Chinese holidays.
One clinic promises to provide “almond shaped eyes” and a “magical V-shaped face”—considered the ideal of feminine beauty in much of East Asia. Another is seemingly full of glowing testimonials from past patients.
While most procedures in South Korea appear to occur without incident， last month attention focused on the industry after a 50-year-old Chinese woman was left in a coma by a clinic in Seoul’s up-market Gangnam district.
As much as a third of Chinese patients’ costs can go towards fees for brokers who act as 4）liaisons for the hospitals. Chen said after making initial enquiries she was contacted “incessantly” by an agent and felt 5）cajoled into having the surgery. She spent more than $26，000 dollars on the surgery in 2010 at the Beauty Line clinic in Seoul. One of her procedures involved having 6）cartilage taken from her chest and added to her nose to make it more prominent.
But upon returning to China， she began to suffer from nasal infections. Now staying at a clinic in Beijing， she says her mental health suffered and she is taking 12 7）antidepressants a day.
“I’ve lost sleep， I can’t meet with friends， and I suffer from depression， because my nose is just too ugly，” she said.
“I feel tricked. I think the industry is protected by （South Korea’s） government， because it’s a key source of revenue，” she added.
Park Ji-Hye， an official at South Korea’s health ministry， told 8）AFP that “activities involving illegal brokers and inflated fees， as well as disputes over 9）malpractice， are sparking complaints from foreign patients.”
Hoping to bring the industry into line， authorities last Friday declared that owners of unregistered facilities treating foreign patients could be punished with jail sentences.
“Some clinics are treating Chinese patients without a state license allowing them to treat foreign patients， because obviously that’s where the money is，” said Cho Soo-Young， spokesman for the association of Korean plastic surgeons.
Back in China， an online 10）support group made up of hundreds of victims of alleged 11）botched cosmetic procedures done in South Korea has begun a campaign to highlight these problems.
“You start to believe that cosmetic surgery is something magical that can change your life. We have to take some responsibility ourselves， for not understanding the industry， and being too trusting，” said group organiser Jin Weikun.
Many women in the group added that clinics had not warned them of potential risks.
Winnie Wang， 45， said she was “devastated， cried and even attempted suicide” after an operation in 2013 left her with unequally sized eyes.
Yu Lijun， a designer， underwent one of the most controversial procedures at Seoul’s Faceline clinic—“doublejaw” surgery—which involves cutting the bone to produce a slimmer jawline. Today her mouth is visibly 12）misaligned， making it hard to eat and prompting her to wear a facemask at all times.
But Faceline disputed this， saying Yu had been through two botched surgeries in China that had left her mouth crooked before coming to them for help fixing it.