Refractory chronic cough (RCC) is a cough that persists despite investigations and guideline-based treatment of common underlying causes such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), airway hyper-responsiveness, eosinophilic bronchitis, rhinitis, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor treatment, gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD), and obstructive sleep apnoea [7–9]. The gene discussed is ACE; the disease is chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.