My understanding is that epilepsy can't be cured (please correct me if I'm wrong), but I'm kind of curious because one of my sisters was diagnosed with epilepsy when we were still children (she was in kindergarden at the time I think). She had it for a couple of years, had EEGs and so on, and was put on medication. Years later they stopped giving her the meds, her EEGs were normal and the doctor said we can consider it over (I don't know how he phrased it but that's kind of how my mother put it I think).
They made a big deal out of the meds when she had it (although she never had a seizure) - I remember once when we went on vacation by car, after an 8 hour drive my mother foudn out she had forgotten my sister's meds, so my dad, uncle and sister had to drive all the way back to get them (because we were abroad and could not have gotten a substitute without hospitalizing her). How can epilepsy simply disappear though?

My son was diagnosed with epilepsy when he was 8 years old. He had 2 grand mal seizures and several petite mal. He took tegretol until he was 12 years old. His pediatrician told me at the time that there was a very strong possibility that he would grow out of this. When he turned 12, we decided to take him off of the tegretol to see what would happen (he had been seizure free while taking the tegretol for 4 years). He did not experience any more seizures even without the medication and he is now 21 years old. Cured? I don't know, I always fear that something will trigger a seizure and it will start up again. But, it's been 9 years so I'm really hoping the doctor was right and that some people do grow out of this. Maybe your sister also "grew out of it".

Syd

Some childhood epilepsy can be outgrown. Best chance is when the seizures are controlled with this first or second med tried.

Yes when you are on these meds you CANNOT stop them suddenly. It is good your parents did go back for her meds....