It sounds unlikely, and her doctors say it would be if the sprightly NSW woman had had conventional open heart surgery to replace a worn out, failing aortic heart valve.
But Mrs Condon this week became the first Australian to undergo a valve replacement without the trauma of an invasive theatre operation and, just two days later, she says she's feeling remarkably well.
In the state-of-the-art procedure, surgeons attached her new artificial aortic valve to a long rod and fed it through a small incision in her groin up to the the heart.
There, the tiny frozen valve defrosted and expanded, taking over the work of the damaged valve to stop blood flowing back into the heart.
The radical method will replace conventional open heart surgery for many older Australians who need a new valve to survive but are too frail or ill to cope with a major operation and long recovery time.
The first operations have been performed in Sydney, all on patients aged over 80, and Melbourne and Brisbane will soon follow.
Mrs Condon's doctor, Professor David Muller from St Vincent's Hospital in Sydney, says it will mean "the world of difference" for suitable patients.
"This is a major breakthrough for older patients who have a worn out, failing aortic valve and too many other medical problems to make conventional surgery a good option," said Prof Muller, the hospital's director of interventional cardiology.
"With this new technology, we can offer more patients a better prognosis, sparing them surgery and a months-long recovery period, which all huge benefits, especially if you're in your 80s or 90s."
He said it was timely, given that the number of patients requiring heart valve replacement was expected to increase sharply over the coming decades.
Younger heart patients will not be offered the procedure until it has been proven just as effective in the long term as conventionally inserted valves, the specialist said.
Mrs Condon, a keen bridge player with an active life, said she was relieved to avoid full surgery and was feeling "remarkably well" just 48 hours after her operation.
The otherwise stressful operation did not appear to be taking a tough toll on her.
"I'm actually hoping to join a gym after all this is over," she told journalists.
"The main thing is just to get back to normal life."
