Doctors in the U.K. say a woman has gone blind after taking drugs purchased from the internet, and explain that the unsafe practice of buying drugs online continues despite warnings.

According to the Independent, the 64-year-old woman from Sunderland diagnosed herself with chronic fatigue syndrome and, on the advice of a neighbor, bought oral steroids from an online pharmacy in Thailand. She later complained of loss of vision and doctors at Sunderland Eye Infirmary found cataracts in both eyes and signs of glaucoma (high pressure), both side effects of steroid use.

In an article for the Lancet by Dr. Philip Severn and Dr. Scott Fraser, the doctors say, "Some of the drug therapies can be counterfeit and contain a concoction of compounds that bear little resemblance to the drug named on the bottle."

"Even if the patient receives the actual drug, there are many problems with this unchecked availability, including interactions with coexisting treatment, side effects and the lack of careful medical monitoring."

While the British Medical Association (BMA) is firmly against buying medicine online, there are no laws banning the practice in the U.K.