<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=2 width=450 align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top colSpan=3>
<TR><TD width="33%">View all thumbnail</TD><TD class=georgia12 align=middle width="33%">Photo 1 of 4</TD><TD align=right width="33%">« Prev Next »</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top colSpan=3>When Madam Asmah tried to contact Madam Nora, she did not answer her calls, and was not at her salon in Batam (pictured) when she went there to look for her. -- ST PHOTOS: AZIZ HUSSIN
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=2 width=450 align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top colSpan=3>
<TR><TD width="33%">View all thumbnail</TD><TD class=georgia12 align=middle width="33%">Photo 2 of 4</TD><TD align=right width="33%">« Prev Next »</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top colSpan=3>When Madam Asmah (pictured) tried to contact Madam Nora, she did not answer her calls, and was not at her salon in Batam when she went there to look for her. -- ST PHOTOS: AZIZ HUSSIN </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=2 width=450 align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top colSpan=3>
<TR><TD width="33%">View all thumbnail</TD><TD class=georgia12 align=middle width="33%">Photo 3 of 4</TD><TD align=right width="33%">« Prev Next »</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top colSpan=3>Madam Asmah (not her real name) ended up with swollen and uneven lips and two scars on her breast after "collagen" and "hormone" injections. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=2 width=450 align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top colSpan=3>
<TR><TD width="33%">View all thumbnail</TD><TD class=georgia12 align=middle width="33%">Photo 4 of 4</TD><TD align=right width="33%">« Prev Next »</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top colSpan=3>Madam Asmah (not her real name) ended up with swollen and uneven lips and two scars on her breast after "collagen" and "hormone" injections. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR>Backroom jobs that went horribly wrong
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><!-- show image if available --><TR vAlign=bottom><TD width=330>
</TD><TD width=10>
</TD><TD vAlign=bottom>
When Madam Asmah tried to contact Madam Nora, she did not answer her calls, and was not at her salon in Batam (pictured) when she went there to look for her. -- ST PHOTOS: AZIZ HUSSIN
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE><TBODY><TR><TD>
View more photos
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->Two women and a man had wanted to look better but now have to face a lifetime of regret.
The three Singaporeans had let a beautician from Batam allegedly inject into them what they thought were safe substances, but found to their horror later that these were not.
The two women were left with pus-filled abscesses on their breasts, while the man - who had wanted a dimpled chin like actor John Travolta's - now has an ugly permanent lump on his chin.
In 2006, Madam Asmah (not her real name), a housewife, visited a beautician called Madam Nora Bima in Batam.
Her godsister, who lives there, had recommended Madam Nora. Madam Asmah, 54, was a frequent visitor to the Indonesian island for its cheap saunas.
She said: 'My godsister told me, 'your face can look prettier'.'
The mother of three had her reservations. She was suffering from diabetes and high blood pressure and did not know if her health would be affected.
But when she met Madam Nora, she claimed the beautician assured her that the injections would be safe.
Madam Nora runs a run-down salon in the residential neighbourhood of Taman Sari in southern Batam. The salon, the size of a one-bedroom HDB flat, is part of a row of single-storey ramshackle shophouses.
Furnished with rusty chairs, it offers hair cuts and facial treatments. Madam Nora was said to have over 30 Singapore customers.
Madam Asmah claimed she allowed the beautician to inject her face and lips with 'collagen' and her breasts with 'hormones', the day they met.
These injections were supposed to give her tighter skin, plumper lips and firmer breasts. But, following the treatments, she experienced painful swelling for a few days.
She claimed she telephoned Madam Nora who said this was normal. Indeed, the pain subsided.
Spurred by this, Madam Asmah alleged that she continued to go to Madam Nora for more injections for almost a year, and estimates she must have received more than 50 injections and spent about $4,000 in all.
These were done either in Batam at Madam Nora's salon or when Madam Nora came to Singapore. The beautician often did so, on social visit passes, and would stay with Madam Asmah or other customers.
Batam locals and former clients described Madam Nora, in her 40s, as having a friendly disposition.
In July last year, Madam Asmah noticed a swelling on the upper area of her right chest where 'hormones' had been injected. It developed into a pus-filled boil that burst, with blood oozing out.
Petrified, she consulted a doctor at Tan Tock Seng Hospital and had an operation to remove the abscess in her right breast.
She recently had another operation there and now has two scars on her breast.
She has tried calling Madam Nora for an explanation and even went to her Batam salon, but the beautician did not pick up her calls and was not at her salon each time.
Madam Asmah has lodged a report against the beautician with Batam police.
She now believes that what had been injected into her was not all collagen. 'I think she mixed it with something,' Madam Asmah alleged.
Another account is from a fellow Singaporean who wanted to be known only as Mr Jefri.
The 36-year-old technician had gone to see Madam Nora in 2006, hoping to get the dimpled chin of one of his favourite actors, John Travolta.
Mr Jefri had responded to a small advertisement in the Berita Harian newspaper. He said, on one occasion, he went to a flat in the MacPherson area, and the second time to a flat in Choa Chu Kang, where Madam Nora gave him treatments.
She allegedly injected his chin with what he thought was collagen. She also supposedly injected something around the eye area to smooth out his wrinkles.
His face swelled after the session. He went back to see her about it but she said this was normal and allegedly gave him 'two, three more jabs'. In total, he paid her $1,000.
Now, he has - instead of a dimple - a hard permanent lump on his chin. He said when up close, people can see an obvious lump.
'Of course I am angry with her. This is not only cheating, but also dangerous to my health,' he said.
He does not want to consult a doctor about the lump for fear of making things 'worse'.
The third Singaporean with a horror story is a housewife who wants to be known only as Madam Lyn. She now has swollen, pus-filled breasts when what she wanted were firmer breasts.
She had gone to Madam Nora's salon in August last year. She claimed she got an injection filled with a liquid which Madam Nora allegedly said was silicone.
She had also wanted a trimmer waist and wanted to rid her face of wrinkles. Madam Nora allegedly gave her some silicone jabs for her waist and Botox jabs for her face.
But her waist remained the same. Worse, her face started to swell. Madam Lyn had paid $2,000 for the injections.
She is still spending more money, but this time to consult a doctor in Singapore to repair the damage done to her.
She had the pus removed from her breasts and has been going for further check-ups.
Said the 45-year-old mother of three who lives in Choa Chu Kang: 'I really regretted it. I wanted beauty but instead, all I got was pain and misery.'
Carolyn Quek
Nur Dianah Suhaimi
<TR><TD width="33%">View all thumbnail</TD><TD class=georgia12 align=middle width="33%">Photo 1 of 4</TD><TD align=right width="33%">« Prev Next »</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top colSpan=3>When Madam Asmah tried to contact Madam Nora, she did not answer her calls, and was not at her salon in Batam (pictured) when she went there to look for her. -- ST PHOTOS: AZIZ HUSSIN
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=2 width=450 align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top colSpan=3>
<TR><TD width="33%">View all thumbnail</TD><TD class=georgia12 align=middle width="33%">Photo 2 of 4</TD><TD align=right width="33%">« Prev Next »</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top colSpan=3>When Madam Asmah (pictured) tried to contact Madam Nora, she did not answer her calls, and was not at her salon in Batam when she went there to look for her. -- ST PHOTOS: AZIZ HUSSIN </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=2 width=450 align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top colSpan=3>
<TR><TD width="33%">View all thumbnail</TD><TD class=georgia12 align=middle width="33%">Photo 3 of 4</TD><TD align=right width="33%">« Prev Next »</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top colSpan=3>Madam Asmah (not her real name) ended up with swollen and uneven lips and two scars on her breast after "collagen" and "hormone" injections. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=2 width=450 align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top colSpan=3>
<TR><TD width="33%">View all thumbnail</TD><TD class=georgia12 align=middle width="33%">Photo 4 of 4</TD><TD align=right width="33%">« Prev Next »</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top colSpan=3>Madam Asmah (not her real name) ended up with swollen and uneven lips and two scars on her breast after "collagen" and "hormone" injections. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR>Backroom jobs that went horribly wrong
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><!-- show image if available --><TR vAlign=bottom><TD width=330>
</TD><TD width=10>
When Madam Asmah tried to contact Madam Nora, she did not answer her calls, and was not at her salon in Batam (pictured) when she went there to look for her. -- ST PHOTOS: AZIZ HUSSIN
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->Two women and a man had wanted to look better but now have to face a lifetime of regret.
The three Singaporeans had let a beautician from Batam allegedly inject into them what they thought were safe substances, but found to their horror later that these were not.
The two women were left with pus-filled abscesses on their breasts, while the man - who had wanted a dimpled chin like actor John Travolta's - now has an ugly permanent lump on his chin.
In 2006, Madam Asmah (not her real name), a housewife, visited a beautician called Madam Nora Bima in Batam.
Her godsister, who lives there, had recommended Madam Nora. Madam Asmah, 54, was a frequent visitor to the Indonesian island for its cheap saunas.
She said: 'My godsister told me, 'your face can look prettier'.'
The mother of three had her reservations. She was suffering from diabetes and high blood pressure and did not know if her health would be affected.
But when she met Madam Nora, she claimed the beautician assured her that the injections would be safe.
Madam Nora runs a run-down salon in the residential neighbourhood of Taman Sari in southern Batam. The salon, the size of a one-bedroom HDB flat, is part of a row of single-storey ramshackle shophouses.
Furnished with rusty chairs, it offers hair cuts and facial treatments. Madam Nora was said to have over 30 Singapore customers.
Madam Asmah claimed she allowed the beautician to inject her face and lips with 'collagen' and her breasts with 'hormones', the day they met.
These injections were supposed to give her tighter skin, plumper lips and firmer breasts. But, following the treatments, she experienced painful swelling for a few days.
She claimed she telephoned Madam Nora who said this was normal. Indeed, the pain subsided.
Spurred by this, Madam Asmah alleged that she continued to go to Madam Nora for more injections for almost a year, and estimates she must have received more than 50 injections and spent about $4,000 in all.
These were done either in Batam at Madam Nora's salon or when Madam Nora came to Singapore. The beautician often did so, on social visit passes, and would stay with Madam Asmah or other customers.
Batam locals and former clients described Madam Nora, in her 40s, as having a friendly disposition.
In July last year, Madam Asmah noticed a swelling on the upper area of her right chest where 'hormones' had been injected. It developed into a pus-filled boil that burst, with blood oozing out.
Petrified, she consulted a doctor at Tan Tock Seng Hospital and had an operation to remove the abscess in her right breast.
She recently had another operation there and now has two scars on her breast.
She has tried calling Madam Nora for an explanation and even went to her Batam salon, but the beautician did not pick up her calls and was not at her salon each time.
Madam Asmah has lodged a report against the beautician with Batam police.
She now believes that what had been injected into her was not all collagen. 'I think she mixed it with something,' Madam Asmah alleged.
Another account is from a fellow Singaporean who wanted to be known only as Mr Jefri.
The 36-year-old technician had gone to see Madam Nora in 2006, hoping to get the dimpled chin of one of his favourite actors, John Travolta.
Mr Jefri had responded to a small advertisement in the Berita Harian newspaper. He said, on one occasion, he went to a flat in the MacPherson area, and the second time to a flat in Choa Chu Kang, where Madam Nora gave him treatments.
She allegedly injected his chin with what he thought was collagen. She also supposedly injected something around the eye area to smooth out his wrinkles.
His face swelled after the session. He went back to see her about it but she said this was normal and allegedly gave him 'two, three more jabs'. In total, he paid her $1,000.
Now, he has - instead of a dimple - a hard permanent lump on his chin. He said when up close, people can see an obvious lump.
'Of course I am angry with her. This is not only cheating, but also dangerous to my health,' he said.
He does not want to consult a doctor about the lump for fear of making things 'worse'.
The third Singaporean with a horror story is a housewife who wants to be known only as Madam Lyn. She now has swollen, pus-filled breasts when what she wanted were firmer breasts.
She had gone to Madam Nora's salon in August last year. She claimed she got an injection filled with a liquid which Madam Nora allegedly said was silicone.
She had also wanted a trimmer waist and wanted to rid her face of wrinkles. Madam Nora allegedly gave her some silicone jabs for her waist and Botox jabs for her face.
But her waist remained the same. Worse, her face started to swell. Madam Lyn had paid $2,000 for the injections.
She is still spending more money, but this time to consult a doctor in Singapore to repair the damage done to her.
She had the pus removed from her breasts and has been going for further check-ups.
Said the 45-year-old mother of three who lives in Choa Chu Kang: 'I really regretted it. I wanted beauty but instead, all I got was pain and misery.'
Carolyn Quek
Nur Dianah Suhaimi
