A 62-year-old male patient expresses concern that his voice has changed over the preceding months. Imaging reveals a growth located within the aortic arch, adjacent to the left pulmonary artery. Which neural structure is most likely being compressed to cause the changes in the patient's voice?
The left recurrent laryngeal nerve passes beneath the ligamentum arteriosum and then loops superiorly toward the tracheoesophageal groove, medial to the arch of the aorta.
Left phrenic nerve
Esophageal plexus
Left recurrent laryngeal nerve
Left vagus nerve
Thorax