GEORGE TOWN, MALAYSIA - There is a slight chance that 17-year-old Tan Hui Linn, whose eyesight was affected after she was splashed with acid, may see again but not completely.

Her brother Jun Hong, 20, said his sister could see some lights but her vision was 'very blurry'.

'The nurses have been applying some cream on her eyes,' he said after visiting her at the Penang Hospital intensive care unit yesterday.

A doctor who was treating Hui Linn said it was 'still too early' to say whether she could regain her sight.

'It's too early to make a prognosis. We need to monitor her closely and continue with treatment. However, it's not possible for her to regain her vision completely,' said the doctor.

Last Saturday, Hui Linn and her mother Cheong Swee Lin, 50, were sleeping in their Jalan Tan Sri Teh Ewe Lim home when her 55-year-old father came in at 3am and splashed acid on them.

Cheong, who was badly burnt, died about 10 hours later.

The corrosive acid spilled over to Hui Linn, who sustained 60% burns on her face and upper torso. It was initially reported that the attack had left her permanently blind.

Jun Hong said his sister had decided to sit for her SPM examination next month orally or with the help of an invigilator to read her the questions.

'I was a bit worried for her as she is not prepared for the exam but since she insists, I will give her my full support and encouragement,' he said. It was reported yesterday that education director-general Tan Sri Alimuddin Mohd Dom said the girl could sit for the examination in school or hospital with the invigilator reading the questions to her while she write the answers.

George Town OCPD Asst Comm Azam Abd Hamid said police got a seven-day extension for the remand order to detain their father until Nov 6.