A cure for diabetes?

In one sense, type 2 diabetes can indeed be cured if all the measures that define it indicate that the condition at issue—high blood sugar—is no longer present. But this suggests that you can carry on with your life as if you never had diabetes—or that you won't have to worry about developing it in the future. And that would be a mistake.

Diabetes is considered a disease you have for life because, while you can keep it under control and live a normal life, the fact that you are controlling it is significant. The risk of having diabetes again never really goes away. If you were to stop controlling it—went back to a sedentary lifestyle and a poor diet—your diabetes would inevitably return. Even if you continue practicing your healthful habits, it's possible that your condition will change as you get older.

Think of it like parenting: Even when your kids grow up and move out of the house, you still have children. Likewise, even after you've managed to get your diabetes under control, you still have the disease.