In order to investigate whether English has, as often claimed, influenced Italian scientific writing, the author undertakes a diachronic study of extracts from textbooks on dermatology over 60 years, focusing on one particular dermatological process. Within a Hallidayan framework, the author's analysis suggests a qualified 'y', but it is also argued that such developments should be seen as a 'positive step towards a true internationalization of the paradigms of science'.