Organization	6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2017
Organization Consolidation And Presentation Of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Organization	1. Organization Portola Pharmaceuticals, Inc.^® (the “Company” or “we” or “our” or “us”) is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of novel therapeutics in the areas of thrombosis, other hematologic diseases and inflammation for patients who currently have limited or no approved treatment options. We were incorporated in September 2003 in Delaware. Our headquarters and operations are located in South San Francisco, California and we operate in one segment. On June 23, 2017, we received marketing approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, for Bevyxxa^®(betrixaban), an oral once-daily inhibitor of Factor Xa, for the prophylaxis of venous thromboembolism, or VTE, in adult patients hospitalized for an acute medical illness who are at risk for thromboembolic complications due to moderate or severe restricted mobility and other risk factors for VTE. Our second compound, andexanet alfa, an FDA-designated breakthrough therapy and orphan drug, is a recombinant protein designed to reverse anticoagulant activity in patients treated with a Factor Xa inhibitor. Our third compound, cerdulatinib, is being developed for hematologic, or blood, cancers and inflammatory disorders. Cerdulatinib is an orally available dual kinase inhibitor that inhibits spleen tyrosine kinase, or Syk, and janus kinases, or JAK, enzymes that regulate important signaling pathways. We also have an early stage program of highly selective Syk inhibitors, one of which is partnered with Ora, Inc., or Ora, and another early stage program to develop a drug in the field of hypercholesterolemia.

1. Organization

Portola Pharmaceuticals, Inc.^® (the “Company” or “we” or “our” or “us”) is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of novel therapeutics in the areas of thrombosis, other hematologic diseases and inflammation for patients who currently have limited or no approved treatment options. We were incorporated in September 2003 in Delaware. Our headquarters and operations are located in South San Francisco, California and we operate in one segment.

On June 23, 2017, we received marketing approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, for Bevyxxa^®(betrixaban), an oral once-daily inhibitor of Factor Xa, for the prophylaxis of venous thromboembolism, or VTE, in adult patients hospitalized for an acute medical illness who are at risk for thromboembolic complications due to moderate or severe restricted mobility and other risk factors for VTE. Our second compound, andexanet alfa, an FDA-designated breakthrough therapy and orphan drug, is a recombinant protein designed to reverse anticoagulant activity in patients treated with a Factor Xa inhibitor. Our third compound, cerdulatinib, is being developed for hematologic, or blood, cancers and inflammatory disorders. Cerdulatinib is an orally available dual kinase inhibitor that inhibits spleen tyrosine kinase, or Syk, and janus kinases, or JAK, enzymes that regulate important signaling pathways. We also have an early stage program of highly selective Syk inhibitors, one of which is partnered with Ora, Inc., or Ora, and another early stage program to develop a drug in the field of hypercholesterolemia.