Just when you thought Grey’s Anatomy has to be ending soon — you were wrong! The long-running show has been on ABC since 2005, and now, the series has expanded Season 15 by adding more episodes to the lineup. On Monday, Jan. 7, the network announced the Grey’s Season 15 total will jump from 22 to 25 episodes.

That said, Grey’s will surpass ER as the longest-running primetime medical drama ever later this season when they hit 342 episodes. ER ended with 331 episodes in 2009.

Perhaps Season 15 will dig into star Ellen Pompeo‘s desired storyline. In a previous interview, she revealed her ideal plot. “I’d like to get into neurological diseases, and disease in general, and talk about what’s causing it,” Ellen told E! News during a new interview. “What we’re ingesting, what we’re inhaling, the chemicals that are in our food, water, air — what really is making people sick. I’d love to deal with that. I don’t know if that’s a popular thing on network television, and sponsors may not like that, so I don’t know that we’ll do that. We can’t be so political, right? We’re half rom-com, half procedural, but I would like to tackle the issue of illness and the chemicals in our environment that are poisoning the planet and our people.”

'Grey's Anatomy'
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In an interview prior to that, Ellen hinted that “there is an end and it’s nearing” for the show. She shared, “We’re getting there. Shonda [Rhimes] and I will make that decision together.” The mom-of-three continued to Us Weekly, “I think that one of the biggest lessons that this show has taught me and being on this show for so long has taught me, is that relationships do change. And they do grow. They take work. Like any marriage, friendship. You gotta put in the work. You have to accept other people’s flaws, and accept your own flaws and try to change and be a better person. But I think everything is worth the time and effort. And things get better.”

Grey’s Anatomy returns Thursday, Jan. 17 at 8 p.m. on ABC.