Jo Anne Zoller Wagner (left), 55, walking with her husband, Art, near their home in Pasadena. To exercise regularly is an effective way for diabetics like Wagner to keep their blood sugar levels at a healthy, normal range.[Agencies]

"I didn't have that sense of urgency," says the Pasadena, Maryland, woman.

But nine months later, doctors told Wagner her condition had worsened. She, too, had Type 2 diabetes.

That scared her into action.

Now, two years later, the 55-year-old woman has slimmed down. She exercises regularly and her blood sugar levels are back in the healthy, normal range. Thanks to her success, she is able to avoid diabetes medication.

Diabetics like Wagner who manage to turn things around, getting their blood sugar under control - either escaping the need for drugs or improving enough to quit taking them - are drawing keen interest from the medical community.

This summer an American Diabetes Association (ADA) task force will focus on this group of patients and assess whether they can be considered "cured". Among the points of interest:

What blood sugar range qualifies as a cure and how long would it have to be maintained?

How might blood pressure and cholesterol, both linked to diabetes, figure in the equation?

And what if a "cured" diabetic's blood sugar soars again?

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