MACAO, Jan. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Center of China's Macao Special Administrative Region government said on Wednesday that the first case of novel coronavirus has been reported in a local hospital.

A 52-year-old woman traveling from Wuhan in central China was diagnosed with the disease by Macao's hospital of Centro Hospitalar Conde de Sao Januario on Tuesday afternoon and has been quarantined and treated in the hospital.

The patient arrived in Macao through the Border Gate on Sunday and checked into a hotel in Macao. She had a sore throat and cough for about a week before she went to the hospital on Tuesday.

As of 9:30 a.m. local time (0130 GMT), the patient just began to have a fever without any breathing difficulties. Those who were in close contact with her in Macao were under quarantine observation, the center said.

Chinese health authorities said Wednesday that 440 confirmed cases of pneumonia caused by the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) had been reported in 13 provincial-level regions in the country by Tuesday.

Overseas, one case has been confirmed in Japan, three in Thailand, and one in South Korea.