British plastic surgeon provides free treatment to Pakistani acid attack victims Asim Shahmalak spent £50,000 of his money to rebuild lives of six women Some were were disfigured for simply spurning a man's advances Sulphuric acid which can be bought for as little as 15p a bottle in Karachi A British doctor has told how he performed free reconstructive surgery on women in Pakistan who had been scarred for life in horrific acid attacks. Asim Shahmalak spent £50,000 of his own money to rebuild the lives of six women who were disfigured - often for doing nothing more than spurning a man's advances. Dr Shahmalak said some of the victims were attacked with sulphuric acid which can be bought for as little as 15p a bottle on the back streets of Karachi where the women live. Dr Shahmalak helped Ashar, 24, who had acid thrown over her by a man who had been stalking her after she turned down his proposal. She had been working in a beauty salon and the man became obsessed by her Asim Shahmalak spent £50,000 of his own money to rebuild the lives of six women who were disfigured - often for doing nothing more than spurning a man's advances Asma, 22, was horrifically scarred three years ago after falling into pan of boiling fat when she slipped in the kitchen He took a team from the hair transplant clinic he runs near Manchester Airport for the mercy mission last week. The skilled former NHS general surgeon had visited Karachi last year where he had met patients who required hair, eyebrow and eyelash transplants. Among those he helped were Kanwal Ashar, 24, who had acid thrown over her by a man who had been stalking her after she turned down his proposal. She had been working in a beauty salon and the man became obsessed by her. Dr Shahmalak gave her two new eyebrows and a right eyelash with hair transplanted from the back of her head in a series of intricate operations performed over three days. Shabana, 19, pictured, was accidentally burned with boiling water when she sat her mother's lap aged just two months He took a team from the hair transplant clinic he runs near Manchester Airport for the mercy mission last week Dr Shahmalak said some of the victims were attacked with sulphuric acid which can be bought for as little as 15p a bottle on the back streets of Karachi where the women live She has not worked since the attack three years ago and she hopes that the surgery will help her to rebuild her life. Fellow victim Kanwal Qayum, 26, was also doused in acid after telling a jealous former friend that she was starting a new job as an air hostess. The Acid Survivors Trust International (ASTI) estimates there are approximately 1,500 acid attacks a year globally. Acid violence is a worldwide phenomenon that is not restricted to a particular race, religion or geographical location. It occurs in many countries in South-East Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, the West Indies and the Middle East, and there is anecdotal evidence of attacks in other regions. In many countries acid attacks constitute a hidden form of violence against women and children that often goes unreported, and the true number of horrific attacks taking place has only come to light after in-depth research. Source: Acid Survivors Trust International He attacked her in her sleep and she has previously had extensive surgery on her face and neck as she recovers from her wounds. She had also had temporary "tattooed" eyebrows to cover up her lack of brows. Dr Shahmalak gave her two new eyebrows - again using hair harvested from the back of her scalp. Asma, 22, was horrifically scarred three years ago after falling into pan of boiling fat when she slipped in the kitchen. She had a new right eyebrow and a right eyelash transplanted by Dr Shahmalak and his team from the Crown Clinic in Manchester. The surgeon also transplanted new hair on a bald patch of scarring at the front of her scalp. Shabana, 19, was accidentally burned with boiling water when she sat her mother's lap aged just two months. Dr Shahmalak did reconstruction work on her right eyebrow and transplanted fresh hair on a bald patch on her scalp. The hero medic is one of only nine surgeons in the world qualified to do the kind of intricate eyelash and eyebrow transplants the women needed. Dr Shahmalak, a father-of-two from Cheadle, Greater Manchester, said he was moved to tears by the women's stories 'Doused with acid because you turn down a man's proposal - people were treated better in the Middle Ages,' he said Dr Shahmalak said that he had investigated the availability of sulphuric acid while he was in Karachi and found it could be bought for as little as 15p a bottle near to where he performed surgery on the women It will take at least six months for the women's new eyebrows, eyelashes and transplanted hair to grow back fully. The new eyelashes and the eyebrows will grow back as a normal hair because it has been transplanted from the scalp - meaning the women will need to trim it regularly and also curl their new eyelashes. All the operations were carried out at the Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplantation in Karachi. Dr Shahmalak, a father-of-two from Cheadle, Greater Manchester, said he was moved to tears by the women's stories. He said: 'I wept when I heard what had happened to these women. Scarred for life because you want to better yourself and work as an air hostess. Dr Shahmalak is best know in the UK for his work with celebrities at his world-renowned transplant centre, Crown Clinic, in Manchester 'Doused with acid because you turn down a man's proposal - people were treated better in the Middle Ages. It was incredibly moving to see the smiles on their faces after we performed the surgery. They had given up hope of ever getting help because the Government in Pakistan cannot afford to do anything for them. We were their last hope. They are not accepted by society because of their disfigurement. They cannot get jobs and, in some case, they have been disowned by their families and left to beg on the streets. They are too frightened of reprisals to tell the police who has attacked them and even if they did, they have no faith that the culprits will be brought to justice. Dr Shahmalak said that he had investigated the availability of sulphuric acid while he was in Karachi and found it could be bought for as little as 15p a bottle near to where he performed surgery on the women. He said: 'It easy to buy with no questions asked. And as long as the authorities turn a blind eye to horrific cases like these, the attacks will continue. Dr Shahmalak worked with the Karachi-based charity Smile Again which had found patients needing surgery. One such case was a six-year-old girl doused with acid by her father for refusing to go to school who, sadly, was too young to help. Dr Shahmalak is best know in the UK for his work with celebrities at his world-renowned transplant centre, Crown Clinic, in Manchester. He has performed transplants on Christian Jessen from the TV medical show Embarrassing Bodies and the model Calum Best.