Does Van die in Yellowjackets? Explored

Yellowjackets season 3, episode 3, released on February 21, 2025, may have sealed the fate of one of the show's popular characters. The episode, titled Them's the Brakes, revealed that Van, also known as Vanessa Palmer, no longer had terminal cancer, as the disease had stopped spreading to other parts of her body. So, she is still alive in Yellowjackets.

The information about the same was communicated to her by her doctor. The doctor also revealed that the level of CA-125 in her blood was considerably lower than it was during the last measurement. This observation could indicate two possibilities: either her cancer is being eradicated from her body, or it is no longer spreading as aggressively as it did before.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for Yellowjackets season 3. Readers' discretion is advised.

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Van is not dying in Yellowjackets (yet)

The previous seasons of Showtime's Yellowjackets revealed that Van is suffering from an aggressive form of cancer, which is at stage IV of its development. It also revealed that the cancer was terminal, meaning that it could not be eradicated from her body, and she would likely die due to it.

However, episodes 3 and 4 of Yellowjackets season 3 revealed that Van no longer had to fear for her life because her cancer was under control. While the doctor revealed the news to her, she also mentioned how rare it was for someone in her stage of cancer to show signs of remission.

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What could Van's cancer remission mean in Yellowjackets season 3?

While a number of the show's fans were excited about the update on Van's cancer, they could not help but speculate on how this change occurred. This was particularly true since Van's cancer was previously believed to be terminal. This meant that while treatments could provide some comfort and prolong her life, they would not allow her to live for very long.

However, when it was announced that Van's cancer was in remission, viewers started to connect this to Lottie's death in the recent episode. To put things into perspective, Tai and Van had considered the possibility that they could save the latter's life by taking someone else's. To that effect, they had decided to try their luck with the wilderness by placing a Queen of Hearts card for a stranger to find.

However, although a man picked up the card, they refrained from killing him. When Lottie's death was revealed in the episode, many fans pointed out a possible correlation between her passing and Van's cancer being in remission. They believed that the former's passing somehow led to Van's life being spared.

Discussions surrounding the same theory took over social media, especially X(formerly Twitter).

"Van's hand shaking because that was the moment lottie died and their connection to each other through the wilderness was so strong that van felt it," one user wrote.

"OH GOD LOTTIE WAS GOING TO TAI’s PLACE TO APOLOGIZE AFTER SHAUNA KICKED HER OUT AND TAI KILLED HER TO KEEP VAN ALIVE," another user wrote.

"I have a feeling that Van either is the one responsible for Lottie’s death or is aware of what happened. Her hand shaking taking the pretzel?the way she looked at her in S2? It’s def a huge twist especially that she was so against Tai’s idea of sacrifices," another user on the platform said.

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Yellowjackets season 3, episode 5, is scheduled to air on March 7, 2025, and might focus on the correlation between Van and Lottie. The episode, titled Did Tai Do That?, is designed to keep fans guessing while potentially hinting at the revelation of some crucial answers.