A beauty procedure promising to reverse aging has left hundreds of women in China with permanently disfigured faces, and the clinics responsible are still operating.
The trend centers on so-called growth factor injections, marketed across Chinese social media platforms under names like “youth serums,” “growth peptides,” “face activation,” and “baby face packages.” Influencers promoted the procedure as a near-magical anti-aging solution: one needle and your face fills out, cheeks look plump, chin looks sculpted.
For a full year, the before-and-after photos seemed to back it up. Then, one day, the complications started.
Growth factors are proteins naturally produced by the body. In medicine, they are commonly used externally in creams to help wounds heal or assist burn recovery. Injecting them directly into the face, however, creates a completely different effect. Instead of acting like traditional fillers, the proteins signal surrounding cells to continue growing uncontrollably.
The result can be severe: abnormal tissue growth, uneven swelling, large protrusions, and lumps that appear as though something is pushing outward beneath the skin.
One of the most widely documented victims is a woman from Wuhan known as Miss Liang. She said she was not obsessed with beauty standards and had already been comfortable with her appearance. She simply thought, “Why not just improve it a little bit?”
That single appointment changed her life.
After the injection, her face did not swell mildly. It expanded dramatically. Miss Liang said it felt as though her face was turning into a balloon, and she became frightened of her own reflection. She later underwent multiple corrective surgeries, but the tissue growth repeatedly returned after every procedure. Doctors have only been able to slow the progression rather than stop it completely.
Today, she regularly posts updates on Douyin documenting her weekly repair treatments while warning others not to experiment with cosmetic procedures on their faces.
Another major case involves Douyin influencer Peach Blossom Baby, who reportedly began undergoing cosmetic procedures at just 17 years old. Over the next eight years, she underwent more than 1,000 procedures, including roughly 400 injections. Around 200 of those were growth factor injections in her forehead alone.
Her forehead reportedly began protruding outward before partially collapsing and leaving behind a large dent. The swelling and tissue growth compressed facial nerves so severely that she now suffers from permanent involuntary facial twitching, visible throughout her videos. Her face also became visibly misaligned, she partially lost her sense of smell, and she fears she could eventually lose her eyesight.
According to reports, surgeons across China refused to operate on her because of the complexity and risks associated with her condition.
China’s National Medical Products Administration eventually banned growth factor injections for cosmetic use. State media outlets published exposés on the clinics involved, while medical professionals publicly warned people about the dangers of the procedure.
Despite the ban, however, the treatments continue underground. Clinics reportedly avoid scrutiny by changing terminology, rebranding the procedures, and continuing to market them under different names.
One of the biggest dangers is the delayed onset of symptoms. Many recipients experience no visible side effects for more than a year, leading them to believe the procedure was successful and safe. By the time complications appear, the damage is often already extensive and largely irreversible.
Doctors reportedly say there is no simple removal procedure or guaranteed surgical reversal. In some cases, attempting to remove the material too early can cause it to spread further beneath the skin, accelerating abnormal growth in unpredictable areas.
