Elevator Love Letter (Grey's Anatomy)

"Elevator Love Letter" is the nineteenth episode of the fifth season of the American television medical drama Grey's Anatomy and the show's 97th episode overall. Written by Stacy McKee and directed by Edward Ornelas, the episode aired on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) in the United States on March 26, 2009.

The episode primarily focuses on Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey) proposing to Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo), while Izzie Stevens (Katherine Heigl) undergoes surgery for her cancer, with Alex Karev (Justin Chambers) struggling with guilt over her condition. Also explored is Cristina Yang (Sandra Oh) dealing with the PTSD of her boyfriend and fellow surgeon Owen Hunt (Kevin McKidd) as she navigates the emotional toll of their relationship.

Although the episode was fictionally set in Seattle, Washington, filming took place in Los Angeles, California. It was viewed by 15.81 million Americans upon its original airing and garnered a 5.5/13 Nielsen rating/share in the 18–49 demographic.^[1] The episode received critical acclaim from television critics, with high praise for the storylines and performances of Dempsey, Pompeo, Heigl, Oh and McKidd.

Oh received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her performance in the episode.

The storyline involving Izzie's embryos is picked up again in the Season 12 episode, "I Choose You" and subsequently concludes on the Season 16 episode, "Leave A Light On".