By Koh Lay Chin
11 October 2004
New Straits Times

KUALA LUMPUR, Sun. - Penang's reputation as the best city in the region for breast-enhancement and liposuction is spreading far and wide with foreign travel agencies, websites and television stations promoting medical tourism here.

One such agency is Australian-based Gorgeous Getaways, which is enticing tourists to Penang for "the highest qualified surgeons and a beautiful, tropical location".

Company founder, Louise Cogan, said she chose Malaysia because of "high quality infrastructure and experience, combined with reasonable prices".

More people from Britain, United States and Europe are attracted to Malaysia's medical tourism offering a combination of surgery and what one client called "a five-star luxury holiday".

A sample line from Gorgeous Getaways' attractive website reads that Malaysia has "the highest quality cosmetic surgery procedures, alongside complementary treatments, including dentistry, optical, diet, exercise and pampering packages that assure you will return home with an inner sparkle and renewed energy for life."

Thus far, the most popular surgeries performed on the island are breast augmentation, as women are attracted to the reasonable cost of the package.

Sample prices for a Gorgeous Getaway package for breast enlargement surgery, inclusive of 14 nights at a five-star hotel, 14 breakfasts and all-transfers are A$7,200 (RM19,849) for Australians, US$5,200 (RM19,760) for Americans, and STG3,200 (RM22,000) for Britons.

Cogan said more than 80 per cent of Gorgeous Getaways' clients have multiple treatments, like a total makeover for breast, face and body.

Men are also coming to enhance their faces and bodies with liposuctionand dental surgery. She did not say how many clients they have had, but they aimed at getting between 15 and 20 patients a month.

Gorgeous Getaways conducted several years of research interviewing "just about every plastic surgeon and hospital in Thailand and Malaysia".

It has now partnered with Ampang Puteri Specialist Hospital. "Malaysia is not the first thing on someone's mind as a destination for cosmetic surgery. It has not been well-marketed because of government regulations. However, that in itself is appealing as it is a gem that is just being uncovered to the world," Cogan said.

She said although plastic surgery was cheaper in Indonesia and Thailand, her clients were willing to pay "a little extra to come to Malaysia".

"I put it down to service and the people," she added. Travel websites, online forums and even British television have mentioned Gorgeous Getaways.

Kelly Turner and her husband Paul Mitchell from England said they watched a UK documentary called Sun, Sea and Silicone on the plastic surgery-cum-holiday abroad packages.

After making some enquiries, they opted for Gorgeous Getaways and are now raving about their experience.

Turner said she was "totally thrilled with the outcome". She came for breast augmentation and dentistry work, while Mitchell opted for dental work and liposuction.

"I couldn't be happier. If I am to consider more surgery in future, I would definitely come back to Malaysia.

"Both the surgeon and the hospital staff were fantastic. I couldn't have asked for more," Turner, who is back in England, said in an e-mail interview.

Mitchell said he decided on liposuction only after his wife's surgery and that he was "ecstatic with the results".

"It makes sense to seek cosmetic surgery in Malaysia. For the same cost as in Britain or possibly less, you can have a wonderful vacation in a beautiful country," he said.

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