Dr. Steven Stain received his undergraduate and medical degree from the University of California, Irvine. He completed his residency in surgery at Los Angeles County University of Southern California (USC) Medical Center in 1988, followed by fellowships in surgical critical care (University of Southern California), hepatobiliary surgery (University of Berne, Switzerland, and health services research (Association of American Medical Colleges). While at USC, he rose to the rank of tenured associate professor and focused his clinical and research efforts on diseases of the liver and pancreas. He served as the program director of the general surgery residency at Huntington Memorial Hospital from 1996-2000.

In 2000, Dr. Stain became professor and chair of the Department of Surgery at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee and received a secondary appointment as professor of surgery at Vanderbilt University. He participated in the development of the Meharry Vanderbilt Alliance, serving as the co-principal investigator in its $7.5 million National Cancer Institute-funded U54 Cancer Partnership. From 2005-2020, he served at Albany Medical College as professor, and Henry and Sally Schaffer Chair of the Department of Surgery. During his 15 years there, the faculty more than doubled, including expansion of residency programs in general surgery, orthopaedic surgery, neurological surgery, vascular surgery, and plastic surgery, and initiation of fellowships in surgical critical care and colon and rectal surgery. Dr. Stain was recruited to Lahey Hospital and Medical Center, starting as chair of the Department of Surgery in January 2021.

Dr. Stain is the author of 155 peer-reviewed publications, 13 book chapters, and one book. His current research efforts are in oncology, health disparities, and surgical training.

He has served in leadership roles with numerous organizations, including the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgery (Board of Governors, 1996-2006); Western Surgical Association (president, 2013-2014), Southern Medical Association (chair of the Surgical Section, 2002-2003); Society of Black Academic Surgeons (president, 2007-2008); Surgical Section of the National Medical Association (chair, 2006-2007), American Board of Surgery (director, 2002-2008; chair, 2009-2010); Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract (Board of Trustees, 2011-present; president, 2018-2019; chair of Board of Trustees, 2019-2021); American Surgical Association (recorder, 2011-2016); ACGME Review Committee for Surgery (member, 2011-2017; chair, 2015-2017); and American College of Surgeons (ACS) Board of Governors (2012-2019; Executive Committee, 2013-2018; secretary, 2015-2016; vice chair, 2016-2018; chair, 2018-2019). Dr. Stain is currently an ACS Regent (2019-present) and president of the American Surgical Association.